What Happens Now?
by wooster182
Summary: This is a sequel to Rebel Yell. It follows what happens to House and Cameron, Cuddy and Wilson, Chase, and a few new characters. Reviews are very much appreciated!
1. The Morning After

Chapter 1

Cameron felt the sheets stir beside her as she woke up. Her eyes still closed, she smiled at what was to come. An arm wrapped tightly around her stomach, pulling her closer. A stubbled chin rubbed against her cheek playfully. Legs intertwined as she nestled her hands in his hair. Lips gently pressed against hers until her moaning encouraged them to increase their pressure. Slipping her hands underneath the sheets, Cameron slid her hands down his back, massaging the muscles.

When he stopped kissing her, she instinctively knew that he was above her, watching her possessively, waiting for her to open her eyes. Her lips were turned upward in a peaceful and expecting grin. Cameron's eyes fluttered open. She stared back at his. Still rubbing his back, she said, "Oh, it's you."

He scanned her face. He laughed softly. His smile was from Heaven, warm and loving and real. "Don't be so enthusiastic," he replied, nudging her provocatively. "I'm only your boyfriend."

_He said 'boyfriend!_' she thought excitedly, her heart singing. Cameron reached up and kissed one of his biceps. She loved his arms. They were long, slender, and strong—just like the rest of him. "That's only been official for..." she started and then looked at the clock to calculate it. "For about two days twelve hours and—"

"And thirty-six minutes," he finished for her.

"That means there's still the time left in the return policy," she retorted.

He tucked his head down and kissed her collar bone. Cameron's hips went up reflexively as she sucked in a breath of air. He loved her reaction. Hell, he loved everything about her. Well, except for her uncanny ability to read him like a book, and make him do the morally responsible thing, and make him feel guilty, and…

"We better get ready for work," Cameron chided, ripping him from his thoughts.

His stunning aqua blue eyes focused on hers. She could not have pulled away from his stare if she tried. Squeezing her tightly to him, he said huskily, "I do love you, Allison."

Her hands slipped down even farther. She saw the haze of love and passion in his eyes as she sighed, "That's Dr. Cameron to you."

Squinting his eyes at her, he reached down and took a quick love bite from her shoulder. Laughing freely, she said, "All right! Enough torture. I love you too, Greg."

Work could wait.

TBC


	2. A Hott, Long Day

Chapter 2

It had been a wonderful weekend. Once she had found House at her door in his gorgeous tux, she pulled him in and kept him there. They went to his apartment to get some clothes, but they devoted those two days, twelve hours, and thirty-six minutes to each other. Both Cameron and House felt as though they deserved a get-away from everything and they saw each other as paradise.

"Cameron, I know that I'm hott with two Ts and all, but you really should focus on the sick person," House said, sucking Cameron from her remembrances of their time shared.

For the first time since Friday, she glared at him. "It's cancer," Cameron replied. "And stop watching The OC."

House smirked as he turned back to the whiteboard. With his back to them, he reflected on the morning. The doctor had just scolded Cameron, but in all honesty, he was having difficulty knowing which way was up. The words he had just written on the board looked like squiggles in Greek, which was about the only language he didn't know.

Foreman and Chase had come to work this morning, bracing themselves for what was to come. They had watched him run around after Stacy, but now he was actually working with a current girlfriend instead of former. Foreman did his job, but kept mostly out of the way. Chase did not say a word unless spoken to and looked no one in the eye.

House shook his head to clear it and pivoted back around. "Cameron, you go back into family history again. Find the lie. Chase, go sulk some more and then get a lung biopsy. Foreman—MRI."

Before she left, Cameron went to the coffee machine and poured some coffee into the mug. Giving it to House, she said, "I'm sorry it's late. I didn't have time to make it this morning." She could barely contain a giggle and she could not deny the glow surrounding her.

House pecked her softly on the lips. "That's okay," he said quietly, playing along. "You were all tied up elsewhere." Lifting an eyebrow, he cocked his head to one side, adding, "Now _that's_ an idea."

She kissed him back, then whispered seductively into his ear, "You have no idea."

He watched her leave. House knew he must stay focused. Dying patients and all. _This is going to be a long day_.

"This is going to be a long day," Chase told Foreman as they sat, observing the MRI scan.

Foreman snickered. "Well, if you hadn't have screwed up so badly, today would be a breeze."

Chase glared back at him. "Maybe I should quit."

Foreman snuffed out a breath of air. "You're not going to quit," he said. "House has given you more hell than this the past two years and you're still here."

Chase looked down and shook his head introspectively. He knew he wouldn't quit. But there was something he needed to do.

TBC


	3. Devious Plans?

Chapter 3

Chase found Cameron alone in the lab. "Cameron?"

She didn't even look up from her microscope. Her face remote and chilly, Chase took a deep breath, worried about the outcome of this decision. "I'm sorry," he said.

Cameron finally glanced up. One eyebrow rose as she waited for him to continue. "I know what I did was wrong. I should have never called Stacy. I should have let you be."

She stepped closer to him. Putting her hand on his shoulder, she said, "Yes, you should have. But you didn't. And if the shoe was on the other foot, House probably would have done the same thing."

Chase was floored. He opened his mouth twice to speak and then shut it. Finally, he asked, "So, does that mean you forgive me?"

Cameron smiled at him. "I forgive you."

"That only makes one of us." Cameron and Chase turned to see House at the door. "They may let you get away with that in England, but here it just pisses people off."

Chase decided to take the dig about being British. As House neared him, Chase stuck out his hand. "I am sorry. You won't have to worry about me again."

House looked down at Chase's hand. He gritted his teeth, but did gain some of his lost respect for the younger doctor. House took his hand and shook it.

Chase opened the door and left. House limped over to Cameron. He put his hands on her arms, rubbing them up and down. She smiled, and reached up to kiss him. House ended up backing her against the table. When a test tube fell from the shake of the table, he pulled his lips away from hers, but he kept his hands on her hips.

"What is it?" she asked, knowing he wanted to tell her something.

He chuckled at her intuitiveness. "We've been invited."

"Where?" she asked, dying to know.

His pretty blue eyes sparkled with mystery. "To the den of hell and all things unholy."

TBC


	4. Dinner in the Den of Hell

Chapter 4

"Wait a minute. We've spent the last three days together and you never told me you could cook," House teased, watching Cameron move about her kitchen as she fixed a pie.

She laughed. "So?" she asked. Cameron moved so gracefully and with so much confidence. The way House saw it, something delicious was cooking in that oven and it was more than just the cherry pie.

"So?" he repeated. "I almost kept Wilson." House put the back of his hand to his forehead and cried wistfully, "I didn't think I'd ever find another cook as good as that man."

Her head popped up from underneath the counter to smile at him. "Well, I guess you were lucky," she said as she began cleaning up the kitchen. "Now, you better get ready or we'll never be there on time."

"Geez," he sniffed dramatically. "If I had known I was dating a dominatrix, I would have bought you a whip."

She threw her dish towel at him as he went into her bedroom to get dressed. For the first time in a long time, Cameron felt normal. Today, she was more than just a doctor. Her life had become so wrapped up in her work, but today she felt like a woman. In just a few minutes, she was going to be eating dinner with friends. She would be laughing and enjoying herself. No worries tonight. Cameron stopped what she was doing and smiled. She knew that once dinner was over, she would be coming home with House.

House came back into the kitchen wearing a nice jacket and shirt to go underneath. He had actually dressed up and appropriately. Cameron's brow lifted as she wondered, and hoped, that he had done it for her. Seeing her surprised reaction, he lifted his arms up so that she could examine him. "What?" he asked. "Do you want me to change?"

Cameron noticed that his chin was cocked and he had that look on his face. The one when he was actually vulnerable, but desperately trying to hide it. She knew the question went deeper than his suit jacket. Cameron wrapped her arms around him, putting her chin on his chest. "No, Greg. I like you just the way you are."

His throat was thick, but he tried to ignore it. House kissed her on the nose, and then said, "Come on. You grab the pie and I'll drive."

She tossed him a worried glance. He rolled his eyes. "The car. I'll drive the car." He wrapped his arm around her waist as they left the apartment.

They parked and got out of the car. As they reached the desired door, House said with feigned fear, "Whatever you do, don't look her straight in the eye. The woman's high on fertility drugs and the fluffy cloud dreams of angels and babies. She's capable of anything."

Cameron chuckled, pondering how feign his fear was after all. She knocked on the door, and they waited for a response. A couple seconds later, Wilson opened the door.

With a wide grin, he exclaimed, "Hey! You're here. Thanks for the pie."

As House stepped into the apartment, he said, "I made it. Chicks these days. All about the work and sex, no time to learn how to cook."

Cameron didn't even flinch. Taking off her coat, she retorted, "I'm sure you're aware that in the language of House that means 'Thank you for inviting us; you have a lovely home.'"

Everything went by much smoother once dinner was served, although everyone thought it seemed a little odd. Wilson and Cuddy were holding hands. House was playing with Cameron's foot underneath the table, and no one commented on the fact that these four were now couples.

The conversation finally lagged. House jutted out his lips as he looked about the apartment. "So, I got this guy in the clinic today," he blurted "A cat bit off his little toe."

All three stared at him for a few minutes. Then laughter rolled as they looked at his expectant face. House smiled as he continued. "I'm serious. He was trying to teach his cat how to do a somersault and it freaked out and ate his toe."

Strange doctor tales ensued for another hour from all four of them. Finally, House asked, "So, there's a reason why we're here right?"

Cuddy guffawed. "A dinner with friends isn't reason enough?"

House gave his head a shake. "Not this fancy," he said. Nodding to the table, he added, "There are candles. You have on your favorite dress. And the last time you had something important to say, you invited me to lunch at a trendy new bistro. What's going on?"

Cuddy looked over at a stunned Cameron. "Damn. He manages to figure it out every time."

Wilson sighed. Squeezing Cuddy's hand, he said, "We are going to have a baby."

TBC


	5. A Baby and a Phone Call

Chapter 5

House's head snapped back. Cameron managed to answer first. "You're pregnant?" she tried to sound happy, but could not hide her worry.

"No," Cuddy answered. "Not yet. James means that we are still going to try to have a baby."

House spoke up. "You've only dated for two weeks. Call me crazy, but doesn't a baby sort of need a more stable environment?"

Cuddy retorted, "House, I'm thirty-eight. The window of opportunity is shutting. And James and I are adults. We know what we want."

House rubbed his forehead. "Then why are we here if you two are so consenting and all?"

Wilson folded his arms. "We just wanted our friends to know. We thought you'd like to hear it from us."

House snatched up his cane. "Congratulations." He got up and rushed Cameron out the door after they said their goodbyes.

The ride back to Cameron's apartment was a quiet one. Both would steal glances from the other, but grunts and stammers was their majority of communication for half an hour. House got a drink and laid down across her couch. Cameron finally broke the silence, saying, "I'm going to take a bath." House just nodded as he stared at the scotch that he was swishing around in his glass.

Cameron lit some scented candles and shut off the bathroom light. She turned on the tap. Undressing, she flipped on her cd player. Soothing classical music poured over the room. Cameron stepped into the bath. Resting her head back, she squeezed her eyes shut, desperately trying not to panic. But House had become despondent and cold as soon as he heard about Cuddy and Wilson. She knew he would fear deeper commitment to her now that there was baby news.

Cameron was so lost in her thoughts that did not realize House had come into the bathroom until he was already stepping into the bathtub. Sitting down across from her, he grabbed her calves and rubbed the backs of her legs. The music and heat from the water wafted around them as they looked into each other's eyes. Then, Cameron looked down, her lips turned in a sad frown. "Greg?"

"No." His suddenness startled her. There had been no pretense, no warning—just a 'no.'

House watched as her eyes flashed angrily. "I wasn't asking you're permission on anything. And for later reference," she snapped, "I don't need to."

He shifted his weight to one side, uncomfortably. "You want a baby, too," House said quietly. "No."

Cameron blinked stupidly at him for a moment. Then she started laughing. "A baby?" she asked. "Why? Because of Wilson and Cuddy? I think they're out of their minds."

House's eyebrows came together in a V. He shook his head, saying, "Then, if you don't want a baby, what is it?" He knew it must be something. She hadn't said a word since they left Wilson and Cuddy's.

She sighed heavily. "I just thought it would be a good idea if we moved in together. We're together constantly anyway. We might as well make it official."

House's eyes hit hers almost pleadingly. "I moved in with Stacy after a week," he said. "It didn't work out. I don't want to make another mistake."

Cameron shook her head. "Greg, you lived together five years. Moving too fast isn't what ended the relationship."

She noticed that his arm was sitting on top of his bad knee. Her eyes went wide with realization. "You're afraid that if we move in together, I'll see how crippled you really are." She knew that she was right because he refused to look at her. Continuing, she said, "I don't see a cripple when I look at you. I don't see a broken man. I see a good man and amazing doctor. I see the man that loves me and that I love back."

Cameron bent down and moved his arm from his leg. He reluctantly pulled his arm aside. House tried to blink his tears away as she tenderly kissed his scar. She tucked herself next to him, hugging him tightly.

House tried to speak over the knot in his throat. "So, you're place or mine?"

"Hello?"

"It's me," the voice on the other end said. The person sounded jumpy and anxious.

"Where are you?" The woman asked.

"I'm in Princeton," the voice answered. "I'll be here for awhile."

The woman didn't respond for quite some time. The voice tapped a pen on the table, waiting for her to speak. "This isn't a good idea."

"I have to do this," the voice whispered. "I need answers."

"You have answers," the woman declared.

"Not from Gregory House," the voice said in a steely, embittered tone.

The phone went dead before the woman could respond.

TBC


	6. Sisters

Chapter 6

"I can't believe it," Foreman said with a shake of his head.

He was sitting in the cafeteria with Cameron. She looked up from her meal. "What?"

Foreman smiled. "Do you realize you've been dating House for _two_ months now?"

Her face glowed as she smiled back. She nodded her head. "And you've survived living with him for an entire month. I think you outlasted Wilson," Foreman said amazed. He remembered warning both of them before their first date that some relationships weren't meant to happen. He was glad this time that he had been wrong.

Cameron laughed. "It isn't that tough. And the sex is great."

His eyes bugged. "I did _not_ need to know that," he replied. They both chuckled.

"You should know everything. I try to. Look where it's gotten me," House said as he came up to the table with a tray of food. He clearly hadn't heard the conversation.

Foreman snickered. "Yeah, being nosy really helps you. That trait has gotten you to court how many times now?"

House looked down at his plate, grinning. He enjoyed sparring with Foreman. They almost never agreed. It was fun to argue with him. Plus, he thought on a high note, Cameron had never dated and/or slept with him.

"Oh," Cameron said, "I just remembered. My sister's coming to town. She called me this morning."

House pushed his food idly with his fork. Family made him nervous, and if her sister was anything like her, she would be dripping with sugar. People like that tended not to like House. He still wasn't really sure why Cameron was an exception.

He stammered, "She can stay with us as long as she wants."

Cameron smiled as she touched his forearm. "Thank you. I don't get to see Emily very often."

"Why?" Foreman asked, secretly wondering if Emily was as attractive as her sister.

"She's a photographer. Emily's always everywhere but home," she explained.

House watched Wilson get a sandwich and quickly leave the cafeteria. Frowning, he said, "I gotta go. Ally, make sure you get that CT scan."

Foreman wasn't paying attention, but House and Cameron both froze. He had never called her Ally before, not even at home. They looked at each other, smiling embarrassedly. House hadn't opened up to someone like this in a long time, and especially not in front of someone like Foreman. House and Cameron felt desire swelling up inside them. She was giddy at the sound of her nickname on his lips. She so badly wanted to kiss those lips now, perhaps somehow feel the taste of her name.

"I will," she said quietly about the scan. He rubbed her wrist with his thumb and then left the table. She let out a puff of wind she had been holding when she saw him go out the door.

House tried to catch up to his friend. "Wilson!" he shouted down the corridor.

Wilson stopped and turned around. He walked back to House. They headed towards Wilson's office. "You do realize this is a hospital. I know librarians are the only ones who enforce the 'talk quietly' rule, but I always assumed it was implied here."

House ignored his sarcasm. "You skipped out of the cafeteria just now. Why?" he asked.

The oncologist shrugged. "Because I wanted to eat quickly, then go see a patient."

House pursed his lips as he shook his head. "No. I think you're avoiding Cuddy. You two are usually doing some heavy petting by noon, but I haven't seen you together all day."

"Maybe we're busy." Wilson was getting that steely gaze House knew so well.

"Maybe you're lying to me," House retorted. Wilson just glared at him, so House continued. "You know our friendship means a lot to me."

"I know that," Wilson said, unaware of House's point.

House stopped walking. Wilson stood in front of him, waiting for him to continue. House fixed his blue eyes on Wilson. "If you cheat on Cuddy, we're going to have a talk."

Wilson looked down, frustrated. "I'm not having an affair. And I'm not going to."

House's brows furrowed. "Then what is it?"

Wilson sighed. "We're not conceiving."

House was still confused. "You've only been trying for two months. These things do take time," he said.

Wilson glanced down at the floor as he put his hands on his hips. "But she's been taking fertility drugs forever. We're going to go see a doctor."

TBC


	7. Bored

Chapter 7

House started walking again. Wilson followed him. "Maybe it's for the best," he told his friend. "Maybe it's not your time to have a kid."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "Funny judging my commitment considering you moved in with a girl _again_ that you just started dating."

House made an exasperated face. "Moving in together is not a screaming, crying college bill with two stubby legs."

Wilson was glad to have the conversation diverted away from him. "But moving in can _lead_ to a stubby-legged college bill."

House exhaled as he said quietly, "I like where things are going with her. And that scares the hell out of me."

Wilson opened the door to his office. "It should," he replied. "Women are scary."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chase was researching an illness on his laptop in the conference room. Cameron got a cup of coffee as she glanced over at him. She noticed that his frown had grown considerably deeper than his usual pout. Pouring another cup, she sat it down next to him.

"Thank you," he said, looking up at her. The pain of Allison Cameron was lessening each day, but his gut still stung like hot needles were poking into him every time he saw her. He had been self-medicating at a local bar each night. Fearing he would turn into his mother, Chase knew he had to stop soon, but he needed to drink the memory of her away. And working with her everyday was not helping.

"Have you found anything?" she asked, ripping him from his thought.

He fidgeted in his seat. "No," he stammered. "Not medical anyway. But I did find an add for 'Gina—Woman of the Night.' I thought about ringing her up."

They both laughed softly. Cameron was glad that normalcy seemed to be returning. She still felt guilty about getting Chase caught in between her and House's relationship.

Neither of them realized that House was watching them through the glass wall of his office. He squeezed the handle of his cane until his knuckles went white. Part of him was still waiting for the day that Cameron came to her senses and left him for Chase or someone equally as impressive. She was beautiful, smart, young. _I only have the smart thing going for me_, he thought depressingly. But then he thought that maybe Wilson was right. Did he actually like being miserable?

He pushed the idea from his mind and entered the room. House wanted to remind Chase that she was with him. "So, when's your sister coming to stay with us?"

Her eyes nervously flitted from Chase to House. She knew what he was doing. "Uh, tomorrow I think. We're supposed to pick her up at the airport after work."

Foreman entered the room, saying, "The patient's fine. She's leaving today."

They all acknowledged him with a nod. "Okay, people," House said. "Who's suddenly bored now that we don't have a sick patient?"

Cameron, Foreman, and Chase raised their hands. They smiled at each other, embarrassed.

"You won't be bored for long," a voice said, filling the room. Their heads snapped towards the sound. They saw a man standing by the doorway. "In reality," he said, looking directly at House, "things are about to pick up."

TBC


	8. Love Story

Chapter 8

House stared back at the man. Raising his eyebrows, he asked, "Are you planning to shoot me?"

The man smiled as he put his hand in his pocket. "No," he replied.

"Then you're not that interesting," House retorted. "Who's still bored?"

The man chuckled. "You're right. I'm not interesting. But you are."

The group gaped at House. "House?" Foreman asked. "Are you sure you don't just want to shoot him?" House shot Foreman a look.

The man marched over to him. "Hello, Dr. House," he said. "My name is Van Reynolds." He stuck his hand out.

House reluctantly shook it. He watched this Van Reynolds as he greeted him. He was tall, but about four inches shorter than House. The man had a shock of gray hair, cut short to his head, although he looked as though he was Cameron's age. He walked with an air of authority, as if he came from money. Old money. His jeans were designer and fit perfectly to his thighs. His blue suit jacket made him look even more slender and lean. Reynolds's blue button-down shirt underneath matched his crystal blue eyes. House was pretty sure he didn't want this guy to spend any time with Cameron.

House was so deep in thought that he almost did not notice that Cameron had started speaking. "You're _the _Van Reynolds?" she asked excitedly to House's displeasure. "Your last book was amazing. I've read it twice."

"I'm gonna take a long shot here, and say you're a writer," House said, feeling out of the loop.

Reynolds grinned as he rubbed the back of his neck humbly. "Yeah," he said. "That's why I'm here. My next book is about doctors and I want to study you. Dr. Cuddy said it would be fine."

House didn't trust this man for some reason. He didn't like anyone, but he was sure he really didn't like this one. He glanced over at Cameron. She smiled at him, slightly nodding. House could see the expectancy in her green eyes.

The fact that Reynolds hadn't actually asked for his permission wasn't lost on him, but he conceded. "All right. You've got two weeks."

"Thank you, Dr. House," Reynolds said confidently. "That's all I need."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

That night after dinner, House and Cameron were sitting on the couch. Each was reading a science journal, barely concentrating. She was snuggled tightly against his chest as his free hand roamed lazily around her body. No longer able to take it, House asked, "Does this remind you of the movie _Love Story_?" He smiled down at her. "You're not going to die on me, are you, Radcliff?" he teased, referring to the movie.

Cameron's hand stroked his thigh up and down. "No, I don't even like the Beatles, Preppie."

Still talking about the movie, he asked, "But what about Bach?" He stood up and went over to the piano. House began to play. Cameron's breath caught in her chest. She loved to hear him play. Music was one of the only things he was completely comfortable with, and she was glad he had it. His fingers paused over the keys. "Come here," he said in a raspy voice.

"I don't know how to play," she told him as she sat down on the bench next to him. He told her where to put her fingers and started to teach her.

After several minutes, both couldn't help but notice that their legs were rubbing against each other. House's fingers brushed Cameron's as they played. He grabbed her hand as he bent down and kissed her. Cameron's lips were eager to meet his. Wrapping her arms around his neck, they both stood. He guided them to the couch. Lying on top of her, his blue eyes gazed directly into hers. House thought at that moment that he might actually be happy. "I called you Ally," he whispered, referring to earlier that day.

Her face glowed back up at him. "I know," she murmured, kissing his chin. "Maybe I should give you a name, too. How about 'Blue Eyes'?" she asked as her fingers began unbuttoning his shirt.

House's face got serious, his lips pursed. "I prefer Stallion, if you know what I mean," he said with an exaggerated wink.

She laughed and pulled him to her. House's head fell on her shoulder out of frustration when they heard a knock at the door. "I'll get it," she muttered, sliding out from under him.

He gave her waist a squeeze as she moved away from the couch. Cameron opened the door wide, expecting to see Wilson. Her smile faded from surprise as she saw the person on the other side.

Cameron's face grew bright again and she opened her arms wide. "Emily!"

TBC


	9. The Swinging Door

Chapter 9

Cameron gave her baby sister a tight hug. "Em, what are you doing here?" she asked happily. Still holding her arms, she said, "I thought we were supposed to pick you up tomorrow."

Emily Cameron shrugged sheepishly. "I lied," she answered. "I wanted to get some great shots of Jersey before I came to visit you. I've been here for the past couple of days."

"Emily, I never get to see you," she chided. "You could have told me you were here."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, big sister. I get the point. Do you have to mother everyone?" she asked.

"Yes, she does. I wonder who mothers her." House said, walking up next to Cameron.

"Em, this is my…" she said, taking a deep breath. Cameron had never said it before, not ever in the past two months. She did not notice that House was nervously waiting for her response. "My boyfriend, Greg House."

Her sister, who must have been about twenty-five, looked House up and down. "He's cute. 'Bout time you scored some. Have anything to eat?" she said, rushing past a blushing Cameron into the kitchen. Emily looked a lot like her sister. Her hair was dark, too, but it was almost black and chopped short and trendy. Her tone was much darker, because, House figured, she was a photographer. House thought he preferred Cameron's silky, porcelain skin. She was several inches taller than Cameron and less conventional in her choice of clothing. Emily was wearing tight jeans and an equally tight tank top. House had assumed that she would be as sweet and pure as Cameron, but she was more like a balloon about to burst.

Cameron was clenched. House noticed this and grabbed her shoulders from behind her, massaging her tight muscles. She closed her eyes. "Emily's great," she sighed. "She's just tempestuous."

"And you're the big sister that looked over her," House explained. "You make even more sense now."

Cameron and House followed her into the kitchen. She had already fixed herself a sandwich and was drinking a beer. "She's friendly," House quipped as he grabbed a drink himself.

"How long are you staying?" Cameron asked. She sat down at the table next to her sister.

In between bites, she answered, "Just a couple of days. I have to be in London by Friday."

Cameron could barely contain her grin now. She was thrilled to finally see her sister. Emily had been away for four months now. House had handed her a beer, and she was circling the rim of the bottle with her thumb. He had never seen her fidgety before. He thought it looked cute on her. "So how have you been, Em?" she asked.

House and Cameron watched Emily's big brown eyes grow dark for the first time that evening. Cameron had never seen Emily look that down. Emily's fuller lips turned into a frown that looked so much like Cameron's.

"Emily?" Cameron asked, putting her hand over her sister's.

Her sister glanced up from her faraway stare. The hazy cloud fell away from her eyes. Emily plastered a smile on her face. "I'm fine, Als. I'm just tired. I've been in four different countries in the last month," she said, yawning.

House squinted. She was lying. Cameron thought she was, too, but didn't push it. She squeezed Emily's hand, telling her, "I'll make up the couch for you."

He rubbed the back of Cameron's neck. "I'll do that, Ally. You stay here and visit until I'm done."

Cameron stood up and kissed House's cheek. "You really are my stallion," she purred into his ear.

He wrapped his arm around her back, pushing her into him. "I try," he growled. He had enjoyed meeting her sister, but he couldn't wait until she went to bed.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chase didn't care that it was late. For the last several weeks, he had been going to this bar, The Swinging Door. He was getting numb to the thought of Cameron. Every night he went, a woman would slide up next to him, but he always left them there.

But this girl was different. She had sat down about ten minutes ago. Chase was struck by her. This woman had honey blonde hair to her shoulders that framed her face. Her blue eyes were chilling. She smiled freely and Chase noticed that her lips were peachy-pink and seductively full.

"So, you plan to stare at me all night, or are you going to order me a drink?" She asked. Her eyebrow cocked in a competitive nature. If she was trying to pull him in, it was working.

He grinned at her. "Well, that depends," he replied. "I don't give any girl a drink if I don't know her name."

She played with a napkin on the table. "Micah," she answered. "My name is Micah Atwood."

He waved down the bartender and asked for a drink. "Very nice to meet you," he drawled in his best Australian accent. He knew he could ruffle most girls' feathers. He enjoyed the thought of ruffling Micah's. "I'm Robert Chase."

She raised her eyebrow again. Lifting the cup to her lips, she swallowed the liquor in one gulp. "Thanks for ordering the drink, Robert Chase." Micah got up off the seat and started to leave.

Chase's smile was wiped away. "What? Where are you going? We just met."

She tossed a couple bills on the table. "We'll meet again," Micah said.

Chase's brows came together as his bottom lip jutted out. "You asked me to order you a drink. Why are you paying for it?" He asked, confused.

Micah smiled mysteriously. "I just asked you to order it. I didn't ask you to pay for it."

She turned and sauntered out of the bar.

Chase sat, stunned. He was sure he had never met a woman like her.

TBC


	10. I Know

Chapter 10

The woman had picked up the phone with hesitation. Now she wished she had not even answered it.

"I made contact yesterday," the voice told the woman.

"With Greg?" she asked, her voice trembling.

The voice did not answer whether it was true or not. "I'll be back in a couple of weeks," the voice replied. "I'm sorry that this bothers you."

The timid woman finally blew up. "You're damn right it bothers me! You're going to get yourself hurt. Greg should mean nothing to you."

The other person took a deep breath. "He does mean something. He _should_ mean something to me."

The voice slammed the phone down, leaving the woman to wish she had done it first.

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Lisa Cuddy stepped out of the shower. Her stomach rumbled for her morning low-fat yogurt. She wrapped a towel around her body and went into the bedroom. Wilson was sleeping peacefully on her side of the bed. His nose snuggled her pillow. She chuckled to herself, thinking that her mother would be proud that she had finally found a nice Jewish boy. Dropping the towel on the floor, she glided back to the bed. Lying next to him, Cuddy stroked his forehead, twirling the strands of his hair in her fingers.

Wilson wrapped his arm around her, burying his face in her neck. She giggled as his bangs tickled her shoulder. Cuddy took only a second to think about the fact that she had not giggled in a long time. He looked up when he felt her body shaking next to his. Cuddy was crying uncontrollably. His face registered panic. "Lisa, what is it? Are you okay?"

She nodded, sucking in air as she tried to stop sobbing. "James, what if we can't have a baby?"

Wilson flopped back onto the bed, exhaling. "We'll know after today's appointment. And if we can't, we'll keep living. There's always adoption."

They smiled at each other, trying to give the other one more comfort than they felt themselves. The sparkle returned to his eyes as he gazed up and down her body. "Love your outfit today, by the way. You should wear it more often."

Cuddy turned over on top of him. Her long black hair brushed his chest. "I love you," she said, tears still glistening in those amazing blue eyes.

His eyes were filled with tears as well. "I know," he said, hoping that she didn't think he stole that from Han Solo.

TBC


	11. Dinner and a Show

Chapter 11

"I'm worried about Emily," Cameron announced as she put on her helmet.

House attached his cane to the side of his bike, replying, "I know. But you don't get to see her for very long. Just enjoy her company."

She straddled the motorcycle from behind him. "Oh, this coming from the man who never lets anything go," Cameron scoffed.

He revved the bike. He turned his head to see her worried face. "But I've never had a sister."

She wrapped her arms tightly around him and they headed for work. Cameron had hated riding his motorcycle at first, but now that they had been together for two months, she saw the advantages. She relished any excuse to snuggle him, and enjoyed hanging on to him. Cameron felt like that was what their relationship was—they hung on to each other, supported each other.

Before they had left, Cameron had told Emily that everyone was going out to dinner to celebrate Reynolds's upcoming book. She hoped that Emily would be all right while she was gone. Cameron knew that her sister was quite capable of taking care of herself, but she saw fear and hurt in Emily's eyes the night before. And she didn't know what to do.

At the hospital, House smoothed down Cameron's hair after she had removed the helmet. She grabbed his hand while it was still brushing her hair. With a serious face, she said, "Thank you."

House wanted to play it off lightly like he was so used to doing, like he had always done to her. "For what?" he asked, unphased.

"For sticking by me, Stallion," she said with a warm smile as she grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him down towards her lips.

Just before they kissed, Foreman walked by with mock disgust, saying, "Go find a room. It can't be that hard. You have an entire department."

Cameron and House laughed and followed him inside. "What grosses you out more, Foreman?" House retorted, "That Cameron's counting my teeth with her tongue or that she's not counting yours?"

Cameron blushed and hit House in the arm. Foreman smirked. "Neither. The gross part is watching two WASPS grope each other in the parking lot."

Her face turned so red that any bull would be tempted to charge her. She threw her hands up in the air. "I quit."

"That's always better than getting fired," a voice said as they entered the elevator. The three doctors looked up to see Van Reynolds joining them.

"Good morning," Cameron greeted him, grateful to change subjects. "You're here early."

His smile displayed his perfect, white teeth. "A book waits for no man," he said with profoundness.

House stared at him stupidly, scrunching his face. "It waits for the man with the keyboard and printer."

Cameron brushed past House's snide remark. "We're so glad you're going to dinner with us all tonight. You'll have a chance to meet my sister. She's been everywhere—like you."

"I'd be delighted," Reynolds said with a small bow.

_This man is more pathetic than I thought_, House thought, but secretly realized that jealousy was speaking more than reason. Van Reynolds was the kind of man Cameron should be with. Smart, handsome, wealthy, successful. And House hated him.

Reynolds's turned to House now. He needed information for his book. "So, Dr. House, what exactly happened to your leg?" he asked.

House motioned to Cameron. "She bit me."

Reynolds's glanced down, scoffing. "I'm sure," he replied.

House leaned into him as if they were a part of a boys' club. "Really hard. She had braces as a child and swigged milk by the gallons. Perfect child you know. Left her with a bite like a beaver."

Cameron rolled her head back in exasperation. The elevator doors opened. "Come on," she ordered them, "we still have jobs to do."

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Chase had had a hard time concentrating all day. That silky voice and those blue eyes still haunted him. As he sat in the restaurant with his friends and coworkers, he wished he was at the Swinging Door waiting for Micah.

"So I was shooting pictures in Amsterdam," Emily said, engrossed in the middle of her story. "And you know what's legal over there," she continued with an exaggeration as the table laughed. "Well, I'm absolutely starving, so I run into this cute little café. I didn't notice the cannabis leaf on the sign because I'm rushing. And I see that their nationally famous for their brownies. After I order a plateful, I woke up the next morning with this tattoo," she explained, showing them the map of Sweden permanently marked on her hip. The group exploded with laughter.

Foreman had made sure that he got to sit next to her. He had been right in his presumption: she was as pretty as her sister. Emily was even a little prettier. Her features were less tense and affected. She smiled more and with a brighter radiance. He thought she was stunning.

So did Wilson. If it had been about a year ago, he might have made an attempt to seduce this woman, but he looked over at Cuddy. He was ready to be with her for the long haul. Wilson didn't want anyone else. He held her hand from underneath the table as they listened to the conversations.

Reynolds sat at the head of the table. He lifted his glass. "This is why I write books. I get to meet wonderful people like you. Here's a toast to friendships and love."

Everyone happily drank to that, except House, who pretty much _needed_ a swig of beer after a nauseating speech like that.

Cameron was pleased to see her sister in better spirits. She was still afraid that something was bothering Emily, but she was going to let it go for now. Cameron put her head on House's shoulder. Her glassy green eyes looked up at him as she jutted her bottom lip out. "Ready to go, Preppy?" she asked, tracing circles on his arm with her finger.

House put his arm around her. "What happened to Stallion?" he asked, his voice rumbling with sexuality.

She giggled. "I'm drunk. I forgot," she replied.

He smiled self-deprecatingly. "It always makes you feel like a man when your girlfriend forgets your sexy pet name."

The liquor had overtaken her. "My girlfriend doesn't forget my pet sexy name," she said proudly.

"On that note…" House said as he got up to use the restroom before they left. Wilson followed him. "If I had wanted a quickie in the bathroom, I would have given you a signal at the table," House told his friend.

"As tempting as that sounds, I actually did just have to go to the bathroom," Wilson snipped back.

House shook his head. "No you didn't. You went to the bathroom about fifteen minutes ago, and you haven't drunk enough to have that bad an urge," he reasoned. "You wanted to tell me something away from the others."

Wilson rubbed his cheek with his palm. "Lisa and I got our results back today," he declared. He thought he detected hopefulness in his friend's eyes. "We got a clean bill of health. We can have children. We just haven't conceived yet."

TBC


	12. What Really Happened?

Chapter 12

Chase hurried to the Swinging Door that Friday night as soon as the dinner was done. He sat down in his regular spot, scanning the bar for Micah Atwood. The Aussie could not get her out of his head. She was beautiful, sharp, and her remarkable eyes captivated him.

"Lookin' for some lovin,' stranger?" A saultry voice whispered in his ear.

Chase flipped his head around to see Micah lazily smiling at him. "How did you come from behind me?" he asked, thrilled to see her. His nerves and muscles were vibrating in a sweet hum of anticipation.

Micah squinted. "A girl never reveals her sources," she countered.

As she sat down, Chase noticed that she must have been about twenty-two. "So what are you going to school for?" he asked.

She cocked her eyebrow. "How do you know I go to school?"

Chase put his elbows on the table. "Why wouldn't you go to college? You seem intelligent enough to me," he replied, trying to remain the aggressor but failing miserably.

She gazed down. Chase wondered if Micah was actually putting her guard down for a second. "I'm in pre-med. Junior."

"I'm a doctor," he announced, hoping that fact would impress her. She made a gesture for him to continue, so he did. "I work at Princeton Plainsborough Teaching Hospital. My jerk can be a real boss sometimes," he quipped with a small smile.

"You don't like your boss, huh?" she responded. "From my experience, bosses can be like fathers. You hate them, but you need 'em."

Chase took a swig of his beer. A vision of his father popped into his mind, his heart sinking at the thought of his dead parents. Pushing those images away, he said, "House isn't always bad. I've learned a lot."

The young doctor noticed that Micah's blue eyes were clouded by tears. "Micah?" he asked worriedly.

She smiled, blinking her tears away. She swished her head to toss her hair back. The mysterious and confident attitude returned. "So what's this boss of yours like?"

Chase stared at her for several moments, trying to figure her out. Pulling himself out of his reverie, he replied, "He's brilliant. And rude. And miserable most of the time because of his leg."

Micah looked down at the table, digesting this information. "Most of the time?" she inquired.

Chase shifted uncomfortably. "He's dating someone now. That seems to cheer him up a bit."

Micah's cheek dimpled from her small smile. Her eyes burned a hole into him as she leaned over the table. "Let's not talk about work anymore. You live around here?"

Chase swallowed. He wasn't sure if he was ready for what was about to happen. "Yeah, around the block."

She hopped off the stool and grabbed his hand. Her eyes gleamed as she said, "Let's go, Russell Crowe."

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"Are you sure you have to go?" Cameron asked Emily that Saturday morning.

Emily folded another shirt and put it in her suitcase. "I have to go, Als," she said. "Deadlines and all."

Cameron sat down on the bed. She put her hand on her sister's arm. "At least tell me why you came," she said firmly.

Emily shoved another shirt in the bag. Her agitation evident, she replied, "I haven't seen you in months. I thought it'd be nice."

"It was nice," Cameron pushed. "But I know you. There's something you want to tell me."

The younger woman ran her hands through her short hair. Plopping onto the bed next to her sister, she sighed. "I was in Africa a couple months ago," she started. Her eyes looked far away as if she had been sucked back in time. Pain was etched on her face. "It was a little village in a very dangerous area. I saw a man that was attacking a little girl. He was going to hurt her, Als," she whispered, still frightened from the memory. "She was only nine. I killed him."

Cameron's mouth made a large O. Word escaped her. She finally realized why Emily was there. She needed her big sister, the one who had always taken care of her. Cameron wrapped her arms tightly around her sister. "It's okay, Em," she said soothingly. "You did the right thing."

They rocked back and forth for a while. Finally, House knocked on the door. "You're taxi's here," he said when he poked his head into the bedroom.

All three headed for living room. Emily turned to her sister. "Thank you," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I needed to tell someone."

Cameron squeezed her hand. "I know," she said, smiling. "You can always tell me anything."

Cameron and House watched Emily's taxi pull away. "She is an amazing woman," Cameron said with pride.

House held Cameron's cheek in his hand. Before he kissed her, he said, "So is her big sister."

TBC


	13. Authors and Mothers

Chapter 13

"What's the deal with House?" Van Reynolds asked Cuddy in her office Monday morning.

"He's a medicated malcontent with a god complex," Cuddy answered, not even looking up from the papers on her desk. "Does that help?"

Reynolds chuckled as he rubbed his chin. "I suppose it does," he said. "But it doesn't really explain why you allow him to be that way." His sharp blue eyes focused on hers. "You in love with him?"

"Dr. House?" Cuddy scoffed. "No, I allow most of it because he's a close friend. And a good doctor. And because he's usually miserable and I don't want to add to his depression. I'm not in love with House. I'm trying to start a family with James."

Reynolds looked down in disbelief. "Wilson?" he asked. "Some guys get all the luck I guess."

Cuddy stopped what she was doing and stared back at him. "Is that all, Mr. Reynolds?"

"For now," Reynolds said as he got up and left the room.

Cuddy exhaled a sigh of relief to see him go.

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"Okay, thanks," House said and hung up the telephone. "The Chinese food will be here in about an hour," he shouted to Cameron, who was in the bathroom. She gave no response. He lay down on the bed, patting his stomach with his hands out of boredom.

"Have you heard from your sister?" he asked, wishing she would hurry up. Now that she was living with him, he was no longer so keen to be alone.

"Uh, yeah," she said, distractedly. "She made it to England a few hours ago."

"That's great," he said. "I'm sure she'll be okay." Again, there was no response. House pulled himself out of the bed and started pacing the room. He stared at the door, willing it to open. She had been in there for thirty minutes. He could not take it much longer.

"Did I tell you that Wilson and Cuddy aren't sterile?" he asked.

"Yeah," she shouted back at him through the door. "That's great for them."

He sifted his fingers through his hair. "I'm glad they can have a baby."

She slowly opened the door. House raced to her when he saw her ashen face and hunched shoulders. Holding a box in her hand, she said, "We can, too," she whispered.

House shook his head in confusion. "What?"

She looked up at him, her eyes filled with worry and fear. "I'm pregnant."

TBC


	14. Hungry

Chapter 14

"What do you mean you're pregnant?" House asked, dread sinking into his body.

"You're a doctor, Greg. I think you can figure it out," she snapped.

"Dammit!" he shouted. "I don't want to fight with you, Cameron," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

Her green eyes flashed back at his. "Oh, I see you're back to calling me Cameron now that I'm impregnated. Nice choice."

"Ally, stop it," House commanded. "I'm just as worried as you are. We haven't even been together three months." He leaned down so that his face was level with hers. He held her by her shoulders and shook her gently. "But we have to do this together."

Cameron eyed him warily. The last time he had to get through something with someone, with Stacy, he shut down. What would he do now?

Reading her mind, House said, "I know I failed with Stacy. But that was my leg. This is our baby. I'll be here."

Cameron's shoulders slacked as her body crumpled into his. "You promise, Greg."

He kissed the top of her head and hugged her even tighter. "Of course I promise. I love you, Ally."

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Chase rolled over, reaching his arm out to Micah. All he found was air. Lifting his head, he saw that the alarm clock flashed 3: 42 a.m. _Where did she go?_ he wondered as his head collapsed back onto the pillow. He laid there for a good five minutes remembering what happened earlier that night. Each touch, every sigh. Micah Atwood sure as hell was a better antidote than beer to wipe Allison Cameron from his mind and heart. This was the second night they had spent together. His stomach clutched with the fear that Micah would disappear, that he'd never see her again. He hauled himself off the bed and plodded towards the bathroom.

As he washed his hands, he heard the _clink_,_ clink_, _clinking _of metal hitting metal in his kitchen. He opened his kitchen door and peaked into the room. Micah was standing over his stove wearing nothing but Chase's shirt. Her back to him, he enjoyed the view. Her legs were long, slender, and smooth. His stomach relaxed. _She's still here_.

"Are you _ever_ going to stop ogling me?" she asked, never turning around. "I mean I know I'm attractive and all, but you stare a lot."

Chase's jaw dropped as he wondered how she knew he was standing there. He went across the room in long strides. Chase grabbed her hips and pulled her to him. "Well, I probably could have if we hadn't have had amazing sex tonight," he teased, his accent tuned perfectly for seduction.

"I guess that hooker academy Mom sent me to really paid off," she said, continuing the banter. She scooped the scrambled eggs onto a plate.

"It's three in the morning. What are you doing?" Chase asked while he kissed the back of Micah's neck.

She turned around for the first time and kissed his lips passionately. "You made me hungry," she said, her voice humming in his ear.

TBC


	15. Distracted

Chapter 15

"This is a conference room, people. Let's start actually _conferring_," House barked at his team on Tuesday morning, popping two Vicodin in his mouth afterwards.

Foreman squinted at him. "We've already done that," he said, confused.

"Yeah," Chase confirmed. "You told me to give the patient Atavan and Foreman and Cameron are supposed to give him a full body scan." Chase and Foreman were both perplexed by that order. They all knew that House hated full body scans.

House puffed his cheeks out as he let the breath escape from his lungs. Pointing his cane in irritation, he said, "Well, go do it then."

Cameron went up to House after Foreman and Chase left. "Did you get the blood test back?" he asked, slightly leaning forward on the balls of his feet. She had taken the test earlier that morning.

Her jaw was set firm as she nodded. "We're three weeks along," she answered quietly. "Greg, what are we going to do?" Cameron had always wanted a child, but she had just started dating House. It had taken forever to get him to be with her, now they were going to have a baby. Worry trumpeted happiness, and House saw that fear seeping out of her whole body.

Grabbing her hand, he looked honestly into her eyes. "I don't know," he sighed wearily. "The first thing is to get through the pregnancy. Then we'll take it from there."

Cameron interlocked their fingers. "I'm scared," she admitted, her face pale.

"I know. Just try to keep your mind of the frightening parts. Go with Foreman and scan the patient," he told her. He kissed her swiftly on the lips, both hoping that the one would transfer some bravery to the other through their embrace.

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"House seem odd to you today?" Foreman asked Cameron as they scanned the patient.

She puckered her lips in thought. "No, House is odd," she replied with a smile she didn't feel.

"I shouldn't have asked you anyway," Foreman teased. "You're acting weird, too."

"Me?" she laughed. "What's wrong with me?"

"That's what I'm asking you," Foreman retorted. "Is something wrong with Emily?"

This time, Cameron's lips turned genuinely upward. She enjoyed his concern for her sister. "She's fine."

Foreman's brows came together. "Then what is it?"

Cameron took a deep breath. "I guess you're going to find out in a couple months anyway," she replied. "I'm pregnant."

"You're what?"

Foreman and Cameron looked up at the voice that exclaimed the question from the now open doorway.

"You're what?" Cuddy repeated the question. Her hands on her hips, her mouth formed an unattractive gaping cave.

TBC


	16. Holy Hell

Chapter 16

"You're pregnant?" Foreman asked, incredulously. He snorted with laughter as he looked down at her belly. "You're telling me you have a little House inside of you? Have you ever watched the movie _Alien_?"

Cameron glanced up uneasily at Cuddy. "Foreman, shut up," she hissed, knowing he was still unaware of Cuddy and Wilson's baby mission.

Cuddy was at a loss for words. "How long—"

"Three weeks," Cameron offered. "Dr. Cuddy, I'm sorry you had to hear about it like this."

The older woman shook her head. "Don't be. A baby is a great thing. Congratulations. You should be elated," Cuddy told her, although she could tell from the circles under Cameron's eyes that she was a nervous wreck.

"Thank you," Cameron said honestly. She looked the other woman up and down, knowing how much Cuddy wanted a baby. Twirling her necklace between her two fingers, Cameron cursed coincidences and fate.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Holy hell, man!" Wilson exclaimed as he burst into House's office.

"In case you've forgotten," House snidely reminded him, "you're Jewish. You don't even believe in the hell you speak of."

Wilson ignored the remark. Shaking House's shoulder proudly, he beamed, "Lisa just told me that Cameron's pregnant. That's great!"

House's face went as white as his dry-erase board. His jaw dropped and his eyelids almost disappeared into the back of his head. "She's what!" he boomed.

His friend staggered back. Adjusting his lab coat, he let his eyes drift away from House's. He could have hit himself with House's cane for the grievous mistake. "Cameron's pregnant. I'm sorry. I thought you knew."

House leaned back in his chair and dropped his horrified expression. "Of course I knew. Found out last night."

"Damn you," Wilson declared. Then he laughed, sitting down in the chair across from his incredibly imbalanced best friend.

House grew serious this time. His eyes roamed around his desk as he asked, "How's Cuddy taking it?"

Wilson held his breath as he thought about the question. "She's doing the best she can with it. I think right now she's just trying to get through the day," he told him.

House nodded, pitying his closest friends. They deserved that baby. A lot more than he did anyway. "What if I can't handle it?"

Wilson looked up at him through his squinted deep brown eyes. "You can," he reassured him. "You won't be your father."

He smiled nervously. "I could be worse."

Wilson leaned closer to him. "Yes, you could be. But you're capable of loving someone, House. You've proved that. You just have to believe it. Everything else will fall into place."

TBC


	17. Fair

Chapter 17

A couple of weeks had past since everyone had heard about Cameron's baby. Lisa Cuddy sat at her dining room table, sawing the steak on her plate.

Trying to alleviate her tension, he asked, "So that book guy—Reynolds—he's finally gone?"

Cuddy didn't look up. "Yes," she responded. "He said he thought he had enough information and left two days ago."

"I'm glad," Wilson said. "There was something about that guy."

"Yes, don't you just hate successful, talented men?" she asked sarcastically, picking up her the wine bottle in front of her to pour another glass.

Wilson set down his fork and folded his hands over the table. "Lisa, I'm sorry we're not pregnant yet, but we can't do this to ourselves."

Droplets of tears clung to her long eye lashes as she put her head in her hand. "It's not fair," she said quietly. "They don't even want that baby."

Wilson knew that if she had been functioning with a bit more reasoning, she could have read House better than that. "I wouldn't be so sure," he told her as he got up from the table. Wilson knelt down in front of her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "House, Cameron, you, me—we're all going to get what we need," he reassured her. "It will work out."

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Cameron was chopping tomatoes for their dinner on the kitchen counter. She froze, looking down at her stomach as she realized that in a few months everything would change. Cameron smiled excitedly when she thought that dinner for the next eighteen years would include a lot of pizzas and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. _I'm going to be a mother_, she thought with pride. The stomach had often swirled at the thought of House now did flip-flops with the joyous realization of life in her body. All the worries that she had two weeks ago now dissolved as she dreamed of ballet recitals and ball games.

House buzzed into the kitchen, popping a tomato slice in his mouth. He was singing "Sugar Pie Honey Bunch" as he washed his hands in the sink.

Cameron shot him a funny look. "Did you take too much Vicodin, today?" she teased.

House grabbed her hips, twirling her around the kitchen. "Maybe, but that' not why I'm happy," he said with a sly smile.

_Did he say happy? _she asked herself, surprised. Cameron rubbed her arms up and down his chest. "So why are you so happy?" she asked with a glint in her green eyes.

He pulled her close. He sang in a whisper close to her lips. "My baby's having a baby," he sang.

A tingle raced through her body from the tips of her toes straight out of the top of her head. Cameron's heart clutched at the eroticism of their closeness and at what he was telling her.

House slid his hand in between their bodies. He held her belly protectively and possessively. She looked up into his amazingly blue eyes with worry etched in her own for the first time that night. "So you're okay with this?" she asked.

He tucked his head down sheepishly. With a small grin he said, "I already went out and bought it its first bicycle."

Cameron reached up, grabbing his head with her hands. She kissed him crazily, happily, passionately. House dropped his cane as they both descended to the kitchen floor.

Dinner was forgotten.

TBC


	18. What Happens Now?

Chapter 18

"Mom, it's me," the voice said nervously.

"You told me you'd be home days ago," the woman lectured as only mothers can.

The voice sighed wearily. "I'm still in Princeton."

The woman stayed silent for several minutes. "Have you talked to Greg?" she questioned cautiously.

"Not yet," the voice said. "I plan to meet him tomorrow."

"Are you sure about this?" the woman asked.

"I'm not so sure anymore, but I'm going to do it, Mom," the voice replied.

"Just be careful, Micah. And don't expect anything," the woman warned as she hung up the phone.

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Chase was towel drying his hair that Wednesday morning to get ready for work. He smiled as he looked at himself in the mirror. For the first time in almost three months, the young doctor felt content.

Micah came into the bathroom, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Good morning, babe," she purred as she kissed his bare chest.

"Yes it is," he moaned and lifted her head up in order to reach her soft lips.

"I had an idea," she murmured. "Why don't I meet you for lunch?"

Chase pulled her in close to him. This was the first time they would be together outside of his apartment or a bar. "Where do you want to go?" he asked eagerly. "There is a nice bistro just a couple blocks from the hospital."

Micah shook her head. "I thought we could catch some lunch at the hospital cafeteria. I bet you look sexy in your white coat."

"I'll see you at noon," he whispered in her ear.

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"What time is it?" House asked the gang outside of their patient's room.

Cameron looked down at her watch. "It's fifteen minutes 'til noon," she replied.

House raised his eyebrows and began walking down the corridor. "I hear a rueben calling my name," he said.

The doctors followed him as Foreman asked, "So what are you going to name this kid, huh? Whatever you name it, he's going to need a hell of a lot of therapy no matter what."

"Thanks, Foreman," Cameron mocked. "Don't let us forget to make you godfather."

"Come, come kiddies," House interjected. "Cameron and I have nine months before we start screwing little Festus up."

"_Festus_?" Cameron asked incredulously. "I am not naming my child Festus."

House squinted thoughtfully. "What about Eugenia? You know, if it's a girl."

Cameron rolled her eyes. "Let's just get through lunch. Those are decisions we all can handle."

They all entered the cafeteria and went through the line. Chase started to move to another table. "Where are you going?" Foreman asked. "We were going to do a differential while we ate."

Chase tilted his head apologetically. "Sorry," he said. "Someone's meeting me for lunch."

House unwrapped his sandwich. "A dying patient is more important than a chick," he told him, motioning him to return to the table with a jerk of his head. Then he scrunched his face, asking, "Did _I_ just say that? When did I become caring?"

"When it allows you to torture Chase," Foreman countered with a smile.

House nodded. "Oh, right."

Chase dropped into the chair as they began discussing the patient. Eyeing the door, he sat up straight when he saw Micah walk into the room. She was wearing a casual spring dress that matched the color of her aqua blue eyes. Her soft blonde hair was half up so that loose curls danced around her face. Chase gasped slightly as she walked toward him. He had not met anyone as beautiful as Micah, not even Cameron.

The group turned to see who had Chase all aflutter. Once she stood next to the table, House spoke before she had a chance to tell Chase hello. He asked, "How's Monica?"

Micah's bottom lip fell, but no words escaped her mouth. Chase's face grew serious as he looked between House and Micah. "Who's Monica?"

House continued before Micah had a chance. "Monica Atwood. She has to be your mother. You look just like her when she was around your age."

The gang sat stunned. They all tried to mentally calculate the odds that House knew Chase's girlfriend, or her mother for that matter. Chase's frown grew deeper. He looked up at Micah. "Do you know House?" he asked.

Micah did not look away from House as she answered Chase. "No, I don't," she said firmly, almost bitterly. "But I should. He's my father."

TBC


	19. Trespassing

Chapter 19

Cameron thought she had melted in her chair. "Greg, did you know…?" she asked quietly, her safe world slipping away.

His blue eyes clouded with hurt as he looked over at her. "Of course not," he replied. House glanced back up at Micah, studying her face, as he continued to answer Cameron. "Monica and I dated for six months in college. I was like twenty-three. She moved back to upstate New York and I never heard from her since. I had no idea she got pregnant."

Chase finally interrupted. "You knew all this time," he said bitterly. "You used me. I guess you really are House's daughter."

"Robert," she called after him, but it was too late. He was already near the cafeteria doors.

Micah sat down in the chair Chase had been occupying. She put her arms around her neck and tucked her head down. House thought that the kid seemed tired. Nodding his head at Foreman, he and Cameron got up to leave. Foreman noticed as he left that House had grabbed Cameron's hand, encouraging her to stay. He smiled to himself as he went to find Chase.

House glanced down in embarrassment. He didn't even know what to call her. "What's your name?"

She looked at him with his own blue eyes. "Micah," she said. "Micah Atwood."

Cameron smiled at her and stuck out her hand. "Hi," she greeted the young woman. "I'm Alison Cameron."

Micah smiled at her. Cameron looked so young to be with her father. But oddly, they seemed to fit.

"I'm guessing you already know where we live," House said. Micah nodded. "Good," he replied. "You can have dinner with us tonight. Be there by 6:00."

Micah smiled and stood up. The spark that Chase had gotten to know so well was returning to her eyes and being. "I'll see you then."

Cameron and House watched her leave. Cameron turned her head towards House. "Well," she said as she patted her tummy, "it's good to know that you breed well."

House laughed at her, relieved to know that she was handling this well. He knew that the first few minutes had been touch and go, but now that she knew he wanted her to be a part of this, she had returned to being "Do the Right Thing" Cameron.

House leaped over the balcony as best he could and hobbled into Wilson's office. "Why did you do that?" Wilson asked his friend. "My door is open."

House shrugged. "I know," he answered. "But it's more fun to trespass."

Wilson signed a document and then pushed the papers to the side. "I heard something happened in the cafeteria today. Is that why you're here?"

House sat down in the chair across from Wilson as he spun his cane. "I have a child," he said sternly.

The oncologist's eyebrow shot up. "Are you trying to mock me or rub it in my face?" he asked. "I know Cameron's pregnant. I already told you that I'm happy for you."

He shook his head. "No," he replied. "It's not the baby. The commotion in the cafeteria was caused by my already born daughter."

"What!" Wilson exclaimed. "You never told me you had a daughter."

"Because I didn't," House retorted. "I didn't have a daughter until twenty minutes ago. I had no idea that she existed." He smirked at his next thought. "Actually, she's been existing for the last twenty-two years."

"Damn," Wilson sighed. "What are you going to do?"

"What any father would do," House said with fear in his eyes. "Feed her and tell her she's going to be a big sister."

TBC


	20. Maybe, Baby

Chapter 20

"He has another kid?" Cuddy asked in disbelief as she drove her and Wilson home. Her hands squeezed the steering wheel tightly.

"That's what he said," Wilson replied cautiously, knowing that under this much pressure, Lisa might snap.

"Is God trying to be funny?" she asked. "We try, and we're failing miserably. House tries to avoid human contact of any kind and he has kids coming out of the woodwork. God's not funny."

Wilson smiled. "No, not really," he agreed. "But we'll get our chance."

Cuddy kept her eyes on the road as she felt her empty stomach tighten. She was getting tired of waiting on chances.

………

Micah Atwood banged on the door. She refused to leave or stop knocking until he answered.

Chase flipped his hair back with an irritated flick of the head. "You're just like your father," he called through the door. "Go away."

"Robert, I know how to open a locked door," she replied. "I'm just not breaking and entering to be polite." Micah kept hitting the door.

Chase couldn't help but grin as he rubbed his chin. _She really is House's daughter_, he thought. He could picture her outside of his apartment, her hip tilted in anxiousness, her full lips puckered and shifted to one side of her face much like her father when nervous. Chase knew her foot must be tapping the floor lightly as honey-blonde strands of hair tickled her neck. The doctor felt his anger slipping out of his body as he reached for the door handle. His face registered haughtiness and aggravation that was no longer there, but he thought he should make her sweat a bit. "Are you here to manipulate and use me some more?" he asked.

Micah glanced down at her shoes as her tongue quickly darted from her mouth to lick her lips. "It wasn't like that," she answered quietly.

Chase folded his arms over his chest in skepticism. She rolled her eyes, saying, "Okay, it started out like that because I thought that maybe I could learn about Greg through you." Micah took a deep breath and looked straight into his eyes. Her voice was shaky and thin as she added, "But it was real when I slept with you. I never would have made love to you if I didn't mean it."

Chase's heart skipped a beat. This was crazy. He had only known her a few weeks, but he couldn't shake her out of his head. He could still taste her, feel her body next to his, the texture of her silky skin, could still smell her warm and enticing scent. Chase's mouth turned up lopsidedly as he asked, "Does that mean you love me, Micah?"

She turned her head and stared at the door frame. Micah Atwood did not get close to people. _People leave. People are vacant in your life. People are unnecessary,_ she reminded herself. But this person was different and she knew it. The young woman had never called sex "making love" before and it had even surprised her, but it was as if a force in her heart was tugging it to his. Micah decided to be as coy as Chase was. Her eyes gleamed like bright blue beacons. "Maybe, baby."

Chase grabbed her hand, pulling her inside. He wrapped one arm around her back as the other cupped the back of her head. Micah's hands rested on his chest as they kissed each other thoroughly, releasing guilt and love they both felt and shared. Some senses came back and she pulled away from him. Chase blinked rapidly to come back to Earth. "What's wrong?" he panted.

"You want to eat dinner with my dad?" she asked, grabbing his shirt and pulling him near again.

Chase shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea," he said. "I was dating Cameron about four months ago. Tried to steal her from House, actually."

"That was four months ago," she shrugged. "You've been working with them everyday. I think it will be okay."

Chase weighed the options. "It could be weird," he cautioned.

Micah squeezed his hand before she kissed him again. "Weird works for me," she said, neither realizing House had once said those same words to the person he loved as well.

TBC


	21. Sex, Babies, and Catholics

Chapter 21

"So do you want to tell her you're pregnant?" House asked as he popped a piece of carrot Cameron had just sliced for the salad into his mouth.

She swatted his hand away from the cutting board. "Micah's your daughter," she chided. "You should tell her."

House gave her an "I'm still eight" look. "You're the one with a person in your belly," he whined.

Cameron smiled slyly. "And who put it there?" she asked.

"Okay, okay," he agreed, grabbing one last carrot before leaving the kitchen to set the table. Cameron had talked, or in his estimation—forced, him into buying a dining room table once she had moved in to the apartment. She had reasoned that since they and Cuddy and Wilson were now couples, there would be more opportunities to socialize. House did not see that as a good thing, but he caved in and let her buy it.

House could barely set the plates down without dropping them. In forty-five years of life, he had never had a child. Now he had two! He was worried that Micah would not like him. Since he had not ever been a father to her, House could understand if she hated him when she was growing up. He could bear that. His real fear, the one that ate at his heart, was that she would hate him once she got to know him. For once in his life, House desperately did not want that to happen.

Cameron walked into the room with a glass of Scotch. House put his hand around her waist as he looked down into the glass. "Oh," he said knowingly, "you're going to be one of _those_ mothers."

Cameron bumped him with her hip playfully. "It's not for me, dolt. I thought you probably needed it."

House's lips turned up gratefully. "You know me almost better than Wilson," he teased.

She chuckled. "I don't want to know you _that_ well," Cameron joked. "I might realize that I've lost my mind."

He set the Scotch on the table and pulled her close to him. "Too late," he whispered as he nuzzled her neck. "You can't quit me now."

Cameron became engulfed in his scent. It so was warm and sweetly masculine, she couldn't get enough. She rubbed her hands up the back of his neck and into his hair, delighting in the groan it produced from him. Cameron brushed her cheek against his stubbled one, passionately sighing at the seductive sting it left on her body.

Neither heard the knock at the door at first. House pulled away, taking a big gulp of the Scotch. He raised his eyebrows, saying, "I think I hear my offspring calling." Cameron grabbed his hand and followed him to the door. House felt comforted by the support and warmth of her hand. Taking in a deep breath, he opened the door. Cameron and House gripped each other's hand tightly as their faces dropped at the sight of Chase and Micah standing in front of them holding hands as well.

Cameron took the initiative, smiling as she ushered them both into the apartment. Micah looked up at House with nervous blue eyes. All of her bluster and cleverness that was so much like her father's was vacant from her demeanor. She paused on her tiptoes for just a second, and then shyly hugged him. A surprised House hesitated, his arms to the side, and then squeezed her tightly. Cameron and Chase stood there watching them embrace, both content with the fact that their significant others were each getting what they seemed to need.

Once Micah and House stepped back from each other, Cameron beamed at the younger woman. "I could use some help in the kitchen," she offered. "Would you…?"

Micah glanced at Chase who consented with a wink. "Sure," she replied. "I can't actually do anything, but I can help you eat the food, though."

They all laughed, relieving the tension in the room. Chase and House watched their women exit into the other room. "So," House said with a mock-serious face, "you date my girlfriend and now you're with my daughter, who oddly enough seems to be a lot like me." He crooked his brow. "Is there an issue you have that we should discuss?"

Chase dropped his head to the side with a laugh. "If I marry her, I get to call you Dad," he said with a devilish grin.

House dropped the joking as his eyes trained on the other doctor. "You're already thinking about marriage?" he asked.

Chase's eyes went wide as he finally realized what he had just said to House. He blanched under House's stare, until he answered, "Yes, I have. It's difficult not to fall in love with Micah."

House nodded. For once, he completely agreed with Robert Chase.

……

"You're dating Greg," Micah stated. She was pouring wine into glasses as she waited for a response.

"And you're dating Chase," Cameron said with a smile. "How did that happen?"

Micah tipped the bottle back up, wincing. "I sought him out. To see if he could tell me anything about my father." Her eyes glanced down in guilt. "He was pretty messed up when I met him."

Cameron knew she meant that _she_ was the one that had torn him apart. "Oh." They prepared the meal in silence for several moments. Then Cameron said, "You've meant a lot to Chase. I know I hurt him. Thank you for being there for him."

Micah smiled at the woman standing in front of her. Her only fault seemed to be that she _had_ no faults. This woman was so kind that she was actually grateful that Micah was with her ex-boyfriend. Micah did not usually like to talk to other women. Women were petty and competitive and hard to talk to, but Allison Cameron was different. The younger woman wasn't aware that everyone around Cameron felt the same magnetism, but she felt the urge to tell her everything she knew, to release the weight on her shoulders. "He means a lot to me, too," Micah said quietly. "I've never met another man who cares so much about the people he loves, except…"

"Except for Greg," Cameron finished for the girl. Micah nodded, pushing back blonde strands away from her eyes.

"So, are you going to marry him?" she asked Cameron.

Cameron choked on a piece of celery she had just put in her mouth. Her green eyes watered as she tried to regain composure. "I don't know," she replied truthfully. "But he does have something to tell you."

……

The food was placed on the table and Chase, Cameron, and House started eating. The three of them froze when they saw Micah's head bent over and her hands together in prayer. She looked up afterwards to see them all staring in amazement at her. Smiling sheepishly, she answered, "My step-dad is a Catholic. My mom married him when I was five."

House's lip jutted out. "What a coincidence," he said. "Chase was almost a priest."

Micah's head whipped around towards the man sitting next to her. His long, blonde bangs brushed across his forehead. "I went to seminary."

Her eyes danced with a bright blue gleam. She squeezed his knee under the table. "Good thing you didn't finish," she teased. "The sex would have left me so much more guilt-ridden." Micah then realized she was sitting next to her newly-found father and his girlfriend. "Sorry," she apologized, ducking her head in embarrassment.

House wanted to erase the images popping into his mind. He responded, "Actually, that reminds me." They all looked at him as if he had just gone crazy. "Ally and I have to tell you something," he told Micah. House twirled his fork around in his hand. He swallowed, wishing he remembered where he had put his Vicodin bottle. "We're pregnant."

Micah looked stunned. "Congratulations," she said. She looked down for several minutes as everyone waited to see what she would say. When she picked her head back up, her lip turned up slightly, playfully. "I always wanted to be a big sister," she said with hope. She loved her mother and the man that had always raised her as his own, but she felt like a piece of the puzzle was missing. She didn't know why she had always felt the need to push people away or be sarcastic or why mysteries bugged the hell out of her. Micah grew up with the nagging feeling that her real father could answer those questions for her. She also had the feeling that she didn't have to tell House she felt that way. He would instinctively know.

And he did know. House and Cameron puffed a sigh of relief at her response. "We were hoping that you could get to know the baby," he said with a delight Cameron had never seen him have. She thought that she loved him even more in this moment than she ever had in the past two years.

Micah's face dropped a little. She didn't want to have to tell Chase in this way, but she said, "School starts up again next week. I have to go but, next break—I'll be here."

Chase was having a hard time breathing. Cameron was pregnant with House's kid and Micah was leaving. He knew that she would have to soon, but he didn't want to hear it.

House felt tears stinging his eyes, realizing he knew nothing about his daughter. "Where do you go?" he asked huskily.

Micah noticed her eyes were watery as well. Her father actually cared. She, and her mother, had been so afraid that he would brush her off and push her back. "I'm a junior at NYU. Pre-med," she answered.

Gregory House was proud. And then he felt a tinge of regret and anger for not being able to be like this her entire life. "Why didn't Monica tell me?"

She pleated her cotton napkin between her fingers. "She wanted to go back to New York. Your relationship was over and she didn't want to hold either of you down," she replied.

"I wouldn't have abandoned you," House said, his blue eyes piercing those that looked so much like his own. Cameron didn't think she could love him even more than she had a few minutes ago, but she now felt so safe to have his child. She could not have wanted anyone else to be the father of the life growing inside her.

"My mother knew that," she said quietly, a bit regretfully herself. "That's why she didn't tell you. You weren't even at a hospital yet. And truthfully, you're obsession with medicine and finding answers scared her a little." With a smile, she added, "Mom had no idea that I'd be the same way."

After dinner, Micah hugged her father again, this time less awkwardly. She left feeling like her family was now complete.

House shut the door with a silly grin plastered on his face. Cameron snuggled up to him, resting her head on his chest. "What's that look for?" she chirped.

"My girls make me happy," he replied, pulling her towards the bedroom.

TBC


	22. Pain and Love

Chapter 22

On Saturday morning, House was making a late breakfast. Cameron had left a note on the refrigerator that said she went grocery shopping and would be back around lunch.

He sat down in his favorite chair to watch ESPN. Hearing a knock at the door, he set down the plate. House found Micah on the other side. "Hey," she said breathily.

Her big, bright smile made House wonder if she had braces as a child. "Hi," he replied with a small smile. He moved back so that she could enter.

He and Micah sat down. Both looked around the room in silence for many moments, not sure what to say to the other. After some time, Micah said, "So, you knocked my mother up."

House nodded, holding back laughter. He had wondered over the years if he would instill his children with inappropriate comments such as his own if he ever procreated. "Yep," he answered. "I'd apologize about that, but I assume you enjoy being here."

Micah's blue eyes glinted with the joy of topnotch banter. "I guess a 'thank you' is in order."

House's eyes glowed as well. "A nice fruit basket would be sufficient."

She chuckled at her father, but her lips turned down into a frown as he got out his bottle of Vicodin and popped two in his mouth. Chase had told her days ago that he was addicted and she had worried about it ever since. "Do you really want fruit or more pills?" she asked judgmentally.

For the first time, House shot his daughter a look that implied she should shut up. "My leg hurts," he answered with a sound of raspy warning.

She shook her head, causing her hair to whip about her face. "A lot of people are in pain," she countered. "And many of them find better ways to deal with it than addiction."

House thought he could distract her with humor. Squinting, he said, "Are you planning to put me in the home?"

Micah's eyebrow cocked, revealing his humor was not appreciated. "You have a baby on the way, and I'm pretty sure the momma of that baby wants to marry you," she said with steely determination. "But I don't see anyone saying 'I do' until you go straight."

House grew still, afraid to go any deeper with her. "We've never spoken of marriage."

Her eyes trained on him. "And you never will if you keep this up. I'm all grown up so you're drug abuse really has no affect on me, but you have two people living in this house that really love you and are counting on you. Are you willing to sacrifice them for your next fix?"

"I'm in pain!" House shouted at her.

She shouted right back. "And Allison's in love!" Calming down, she said quietly, but sure enough that it hit House right in the gut, "Right now, both of you are thinking with impaired judgments."

They both fell silent, knowing nothing more could be said. She got up and went to the piano. Her fingers grazed over the keys lightly, as if honoring them. House followed her, sitting down on the bench next to her. "You know how to play?" he asked, almost apologetically.

She accepted, but didn't answer. She responded to the question by playing. Her fingers glided through the notes as easily as she played some Chopin. After playing the classical piece for several minutes, she changed to blues without skipping a beat. The hearty music filled the apartment until she switched again, this time to a Beatles song. House stared at her face and then her hands in awe. Micah's eyes were closed as she felt the notes leak from her hands out unto the keys. Her features looked so peaceful as if she were going through a religious experience. House placed his hands on the keys and began playing with her. Micah's eyes shot open as she looked at her father while she still played. They smiled at each other. Neither usually shared this talent with others, but it had always been a fine escape from reality, a world all their own to devour and conquer.

Cameron walked into the apartment, bombarded by the loud music. She was carrying two large bags of grocery. Neither father nor daughter had been able to hear her enter. House shot up when he saw her walk past him. He grabbed one of the bags and limped into the kitchen. Micah continued to play, although more softly this time, suspecting that they needed some time to talk.

The conversation with Micah still had House reeling, so he was not ready for serious conversations with Cameron. "Did you feed Steve McQueen before you left today?" he asked as he shoved boxes of cereal into the cabinet.

"You mean your ex-girlfriend's ex-rat?" she retorted with her head in the refrigerator. House turned, nervously squeezing the jar of peanut butter in his hand. Cameron stood up straight, delighting in his pale face. She smiled, saying, "Yes, the legend has been fed and watered."

He let out a sigh of relief. _She had just been joking_, he reassured himself. He set down the jar and asked, "Do you want to marry me?"

Cameron nearly dropped the package of cheese she was holding. "Are you proposing?" Her heart was in her throat, pounding.

He shook his head. "No, I'm just asking if you want to marry me."

She threw the cheese at him. "I almost forgot what a son of a—"

House raised in hands in apology. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean for it to come out that way." He sighed again. "With the baby coming, I just wondered what you want from me."

Cameron came up to him with love, pity, and anger dancing over the features of her face. She grabbed his arms, saying, "I just want you. And I want to raise this baby with you."

He bent down and kissed her on the forehead. "I can't wait for Tuesday to get here."

Cameron lifted her head and nibbled on his neck. "Why?"

"You're first appointment is Tuesday. We'll get to see what our baby looks like," he said softly, caressing her back with his hands. "Fifty bucks says it has my nose."

……………………………………

That Tuesday around noon, House and Cameron headed for the third floor of the hospital. They had personally asked the head of the OBGYN/Prenatal department to be their doctor and the woman readily agreed, although she cursed herself for letting Greg House be her patient.

House and Cameron sat down in the sterile room, waiting for Dr. Booth. She walked in, greeting them with a toothy smile. "How are we all today?"

"Anxious to see if our baby had two heads. Can we get on with it," House said abrasively. Cameron stared at him in shock, but deep down knew that he was as nervous as she.

Dr. Booth crooked her head to the side. "All right, then," she said, and then begun the examination. She asked if they wanted to know the sex of their child and they both agreed that they did. As she gave the ultrasound, she gasped. "Oh, my."

Cameron reached for House's hand. "What is it?" they both cried.

Dr. Booth gave a silent prayer for all of humanity. Looking up at them with big eyes, she saw the worry in their faces. "You're going to have twins. A boy and a girl."

TBC


	23. Book Review

Chapter 23

House and Cameron were alone in House's office just moments after their doctor's visit. He was sitting at in his chair, his feet propped up next to Cameron's thigh, who was sitting on top of the desk. She was rolling the red and grey ball in her hands as he twirled his cane. They had not spoken to each other since they had left the examination room.

"We're having twins," Cameron stated stupidly. Her eyes were wide and her voice was thick.

"Yeah," House said sarcastically. "I was in the room, too." Cameron's head snapped around, her eyes burning with irritation. House dipped his head, his chin touching his chest as he sighed. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I just wasn't expecting this."

Her eyes stung with tears as she said, "I had just gotten used to the idea of being able to handle one child. How are we going to raise two?"

House stood up and came up between her legs to wrap his arms around her, just as he had the night of the charity ball in this very office, the night that they made love for the first time. He lifted his hand to her neck and rubbed her nape with his thumb. Sighing, Cameron's body arched against his. He teasingly licked her lips, but refused to kiss her. House's eyes nearly rolled back in his head at her small moans of tortured anticipation. Cameron grabbed his head with both hands and pulled his mouth to hers. House breathed heavily, warmly across her face as he said, "This is how. This is how we're going to make it."

Cameron green eyes were still hazed with passion and were now clouding with confusion. "We're going to make out in your office to survive?"

He chuckled softly, the rumble of his laughter deep and sexy. Cameron brushed her hand over his soft, untamed hair as he shook his head. "We're going to love each other, Ally."

……………………………

Cuddy was finishing a file for a patient in a clinic room. Putting her hand on her forehead, she let out a gust of wind. She had to tell herself the truth: she was hiding from James. It had been four months and she was still without a child. The despair in her heart was almost too much. She could barely breathe. Cuddy was afraid that any more changes in her life would break her. So she was avoiding Wilson. He was being so strong and loving, but she did not want to hear it anymore. She wanted to break down with him. She wanted them to cry and scream and bellow that life was not fair.

Lisa Cuddy did not want to be rational and safe anymore. She felt herself slipping from the edge of reality and part of her wanted to fall.

The door opened. Holding her breath, her head turned towards the motion. House popped his head through the door. She let out a sigh of relief. "What do you want, House? I'm busy."

"Well, you'd be a lot more busy if you'd come over here and—"

Cuddy cut him off. "Lewd annoyances aren't really appropriate now, do you think?" she said dryly as she usually did to House. "You're about to be a daddy."

House stepped farther into the room and sat down on the stool. "That's why I'm here," he replied tiredly.

She looked up at him skeptically. Her pen had stopped moving over the file.

His face scrunched in pain. He would rather have another infarction than tell her this, but after all she had gone through and all the shots he had given her, he felt like it was his responsibility to let her know. "Cameron and I saw Dr. Booth today. She's having twins."

………………………

Van Reynolds strutted through the lobby. The smirk on his face was proof that he enjoyed turning the nurses' heads. His silver head shined attractively as he headed for his destination.

He knocked on the door, but heard no response. Her assistant said she was there, but no one seemed to be in the office. Reynolds entered without hesitation. The author was not aware people even knew how to say no to him. If he wanted something, he took it and right now he wanted to see Lisa Cuddy.

The man would be lying if he said that he was there strictly for business. When he had been there weeks ago to follow Greg House around, he had found himself in her office many times. It perplexed him that she did not seem affected by him. Reynolds knew that she was in a relationship, but he could name many women that were even married who often threw themselves at him.

He jumped when Cuddy's chair spun around to face him. She had heard him enter, but did not want to speak to anyone. Seeing her smeared mascara and the tears pooled in her eyes, he rushed to sit down. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Reynolds blue eyes nearly matched House's. Cuddy scanned his face through the watery screen over her eyes. As a man, he was breathtaking. His skin was nearly faultless and handsomely tan. She was not in the mood for trifles. "Do I look bloody all right?" she shot back.

He looked down, laughing lightly, embarrassed at his own stupidity. Scratching his eyebrow with the tip of his thumb, he said, "You look like hell."

Her shirt hung even a little lower than usual as she leaned over her desk, her arms slumped over the table. She looked exhausted and miserable. "What are you doing here, Mr. Reynolds? Aren't you supposed to be off writing your book?"

He gave her the smile of the decade. His family line had perfected it over the years and it had been passed to him through his blue blood. "Please, call me Van. I was writing, but I discovered that I didn't have everything that I needed."

She shook her head, saying, "So what do you need?"

The smile he gave her to this question was even more stunningly beautiful than the first.

………………………………

Wilson's eyelids drooped from tiredness and frustration. He wanted a child. He desperately wanted a child with Lisa, but it did not seem like he was going to have either. The oncologist was beginning to fear that he would not have her for very long.

Especially since House had told him that he and Cameron were going to have twins a few hours ago. He knew that House had already told Cuddy, and he could almost envision with a pain in his soul the hurt that would cross her face. James Wilson knew Cuddy well enough to know that she must be happy for the other couple, but the thought of them suddenly having three children now and her still being barren must be unbearable.

He saw his last scheduled patient and headed for her office. Wilson thought that she would need a shoulder to cry on, or possibly even more. He had discovered in the last few months that she had a vivacious appetite, and her passion seemed to increase when she was upset. The doctor loved being with her, holding her, kissing her, sleeping next to her. This relationship was different than any other he ever had. He had tried to be close to his wives, but he always lost interest and they finally gave up on him. The women with whom he had had affairs were distractions from the problems of marriage.

James Wilson decided then with a silly smile that he would never feel the desire to cheat on Lisa Cuddy. He loved her with the forever kind of love. Traipsing down the corridor, he realized that House would tear him apart if he ever heard him utter declarations like that, but he did not care. He knew what was in his heart.

He walked into the clinic towards Cuddy's office. A nurse stopped him, saying, "Dr. Wilson, if you're looking for Dr. Cuddy, she's not in her office."

Wilson's brow furrowed. "I just phoned her assistant. She said she was here." The nurse shook her head furiously. Wilson's eyes squinted in curiosity at the woman. She was wringing her hands and shifting her weight every few seconds.

Wilson barged past her and found Lisa's office was shaded because the blinds were pulled down. He tried the door, but it was locked. The doctor's heart sank in worry and dread. Cuddy must have forgotten that she had given him a key two months ago.

He swung the door open, but froze in the doorway. His world sank away as if it were made from watercolors that were dripping around him.

Wilson's stomach lurched as he saw a half-naked Van Reynolds atop Lisa Cuddy on her desk.

TBC


	24. A Helping Hand

Chapter 24

Cameron had heard that Van Reynolds was back in the building and headed towards Cuddy's office. Excited, she picked up a copy of his book from her desk that she had forgotten to have him sign for her sister and headed downstairs. The doctor had clinic duty to do anyway, so she thought she could stop in at Cuddy's office and ask him to sign it. She paused several yards from the dean's door when she saw Wilson frantically trying to find the key to the shaded office. Cameron's jaw dropped as the scene unfolded in front of her.

"Lisa?" Wilson gasped. He had flashbacks of his wife telling him that she was leaving him for another man. Stumbling back, his back hit the wall. Wilson reflexively shut his eyes from the contact, but he also was relieved to blank out the picture of Lisa Cuddy and Van Reynolds being together.

"Oh, no, James," Cuddy cried out quietly as she scrambled to rebutton her blouse. Reynolds slid off the desk, standing in the corner with an amused smirk plastered to his face. Cuddy ran around towards Wilson, but he waved his hands to stop her.

"Not now," Wilson said steadily, his voice as deep and calm as usual when things were rough. Although he sounded still, his body felt ready to collapse into a heap of tears and rage.

Tears spilled down Cuddy's face. She wrapped her arms around her, hugging her body for the comfort she had resented and now needed from Wilson.

Watching Cuddy's pain made Wilson crave her touch. He wanted to hold her, soothe her, but he held his hand back. Wilson turned around and bolted from the room, running directly into Cameron.

Cameron noticed that his face registered embarrassment. Cameron's eyebrows rose in sympathy as she said, "House has already left. Let me take you home."

On the verge of tears himself, he said, "I'll be in the parking lot in ten minutes."

They separated. Cameron told the head nurse that she would have to reschedule her clinic duty. The nurse readily agreed. The woman had always liked James Wilson and would have taken him home in a heartbeat herself if she had not have already been married. Cameron spotted Van Reynolds strolling past her. "Mr. Reynolds?" she called after him.

He cringed at the sound of her voice, but as he turned to talk to her, he was all smiles. "Yes?"

Her face was harsh and sharp as it tended to be when she planned to deliver a slaughtering. "Your books always stood for honesty and love and morality," she spat. Shoving the book at his chest, making him take it, she added with disgust, "Too bad the writer doesn't have the same amount of decency." Cameron stomped away, anger flushing her features.

……………………………

House heard the door open. Smiling, he decided it would be fun to tease Cameron enticingly. He shouted from the bedroom, "Hey, Ally, I found your old cheerleader outfit. Why don't you put it on and tell your math teacher Mr. House why you should get an A?"

"House, please shut up."

He started to chuckle at the reaction until he realized that Cameron sounded a lot like Wilson. Frowning, he hobbled into the living room. He saw his friend slumped over on the couch. Turning his head to Cameron, who was standing next to him, he asked, "What happened?"

Cameron was still staring at Wilson, willing him not to break down. The man was strong, but she could tell that this was killing him. "He found Cuddy with Van Reynolds," she whispered.

House's face went blank as he tried to comprehend that piece of news. Of all people, he never thought Lisa Cuddy would be the unfaithful kind. _Maybe she has a tumor in her brain_, he pondered thoughtfully, but he knew the real reason. She was as miserable as she had just made James Wilson.

Cameron went to the refrigerator and grabbed two beers. Handing them to House, she said quietly, "I'm going to take a bath and go to bed."

House nodded, realizing that she was giving them time alone. He gave a bottle of beer to Wilson and then sat down on the couch next to him. There they were again, sitting together after another relationship had gone sour, but this time was different. House had Cameron. For once, he was grateful.

They sat in silence, watching television and drinking. Wilson was not ready to talk, so House uncharacteristically gave him his space. He only said without Wilson even asking him, "Stay as long as you need."

TBC


	25. You Can't Always Get What You Want

Chapter 25

Lisa Cuddy flipped on the switch, light filling her apartment. Her eyes washed over the empty room. Her heart felt just as solitary. Tossing down her keys onto the table, she headed towards the kitchen. Cuddy needed a beer. She had caused irrevocable damage and had no idea what to do about it. Wilson's face kept flashing through her mind. He looked so pained and devastated. Her soul cracked a little deeper every time she saw that face or heard his voice.

She unbuttoned and took off her suit jacket. Cuddy relished in the sound of the bottle cap snapping off. The silence entombing the room was suffocating her.

…………………………

House peeked into their bedroom. The television chattered softly while Cameron was lightly snoring. His grin at the scene was insuppressible. She looked so peaceful and without worry, which for Cameron, was a miracle.

He crept into the living room. Wilson was sprawled out on the couch, his beer still hanging loosely from his hand. House slid it from his grip and set it on the table. His bottom lip pushed out in thought. After Stacy, he never thought that he'd be watching over two people he dearly loved. House pushed people away to avoid pain. No one would have considered that he would end up with three children and their mother that he loved.

He loved Allison Cameron. House still could not believe it himself. The man had spent the last ten years cementing walls around his heart and it only took a naïve little atheist with a heart filled with puppies, clouds, and gold two years to break those barriers down. Picking up his car keys, he realized that he was afraid to think that she might be the love of his life. He and Wilson both had always thought that Stacy was the one, but now when he closed his eyes, Allison was the person he saw, smiling, kissing, loving him.

House left Cameron a note at the door and headed for the parking lot. He did not want to tell her, but he had never been more frightened than he was right now. Not even his infarction was as terrifying as the thought of having and raising children. His heart thrilled at the thought of Cameron having his children in her tummy, but he was worried that he could not actually take care of these two little lives.

Driving down the street, his thought turned to Micah. She was so amazingly beautiful. And bold. And strong. He could not have been more proud. Chase seemed to love her too. The pair fit together well, but he hoped that they did not get hurt.

He parked in front of the building and stepped out of the car. House knocked on the door and waited.

Cuddy rushed to the door, hoping that it was James. Her head fell onto the edge of the door when she saw that it was House. "What do you want, House?" she asked wearily, her throat raspy.

House tucked his head down as he paused before saying, "I'm here to get some of Wilson's stuff."

A tear slipped down her cheek as she let him in. "How is he?" she asked quietly.

House went into the bedroom. "He's peachy keen. Wilson's partying it up with the stripper neighbor next door," he called from the room.

She shut her eyes. "House," she pleaded. Cuddy followed him into the bedroom.

He turned around with a shirt in his hand. "Right now, he's broken," he told her. "What happened?"

She sifted her hands through her thick hair. "I needed a distraction from my meltdown. Reynolds was there and he wasn't…"

"He wasn't Wilson," House finished.

Cuddy sighed in relief. House understood. But that still didn't fix the situation. Covering her eyes with her hands, she cried, "I don't know what to do."

House limped over to her, wrapping his arms around her. Cuddy shook as she wept all of her pain out onto his chest. For once, he did not have an answer. House did not know what she should do either.

…………………………

It had been several days since Wilson had come to stay with House and Cameron. Micah would be returning to school in a few days. She would be given birth in just a few months. Cameron had yet to call her parents and even tell them that she was dating Greg House. She plopped eggs on to the plate as she thought of all the changes their lives were about to see.

She did not know how she planned to tell her mother and father. She had told Emily over the phone days ago, but her parents were upper-middle class Presbyterians from Vermont. Cameron had never even told them that she was an atheist. She wondered how she could be so honest with those around her but could not even tell her parents any details of her life.

Her stomach fluttered when her mind drifted to House. Cameron felt like giggling when she even thought of him, the way he touched her, his soft whisper in her ear while they laid together at night, the life inside her that he gave her. She never thought that he would open up to her after Stacy had come back with her husband, but he had and he loved her. She gasped at the thought of how much she loved him.

Wilson stepped into the kitchen, pulling her from her daydreams. "Are any of those eggs for me?" he asked as he sat down on the stool in front of her.

She smiled back at him. "Of course," she replied. House was still in the shower, so they both began eating in silence. Cameron twirled her fork in her hand for a few minutes until she finally asked, "How long are you going to wait before you forgive her?"

He glanced up. Quietly but sternly, he retorted, "I'm at least going to finish my eggs first."

Cameron's jaw stiffened. "You cheated on all three of your wives. Didn't you ever wish that they would have understood where you were coming from?"

Wilson did not like where this conversation was headed. "Yes," he almost whispered.

She leaned closer into him over the counter. "Well, now you have the advantage," she said. "You know what Cuddy was feeling."

Wilson pushed back his hair. "I wanted this relationship to be different."

"What we want is almost never what we get," she countered. "Now you'll be able to see how strong this relationship that you wanted so much really is."

TBC


	26. But You Can Get What You Need

Chapter 26

Micah and Chase were standing at his door, her bags scattered by her feet. "I am going to miss you, my little Australian koala bear," she cooed, her arms circling his hips.

Chase pecked her on the nose. "Please don't call me that again," he laughed. Pulling her into a tight hug, he whispered, "Hurry back, Micah."

She kissed his slowly and enticingly as her promise that she would. "Thanks for letting Greg drive me to the airport," she said.

"It's probably better anyway," he replied with his devilishly toothy grin. "I really don't want to watch you cry over me."

They smiled at each other, passion over-filling their hearts. House knocked on the door. They said their goodbyes and she got into the car with House and Cameron. Casual conversation lasted only seconds. Micah asked, "So when are you do?"

Cameron turned around to look at her. "April," she said on a long breath. "We all have a long time to get to know each other before they come."

Micah pulled a piece of lint from her skirt. "Well, when they're old enough for allowances, I'll be demanding back payments," she said glibly.

House glanced over her through the rearview mirror, a smile dancing over his lips. "When are you coming back?" he asked.

Micah tried to hide her happiness. "There's a fall break at the beginning of October."

He steered into the airport parking lot. At the terminal, House gave her a hug. Tears stung at Micah's eyes as she told him, "I'm glad I found you."

House kissed her temple with fatherly care. "I am too," he whispered.

…………………………

Wilson looked around his apartment. Nothing seemed to have been touched or moved since he had left. Hearing the shower running, he took a deep breath. This was going to be the most difficult conversation he had ever had. He went into the bedroom and sat down on the bed.

Cuddy jumped as she stepped out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel. They both flashed back to the morning that she had come back to bed after her shower when they had talked about their baby options.

Wilson's breath caught. "Hi," he said.

She stepped closer to him. "James, I am so sorry."

He looked down at his hands. "I know."

Cuddy dropped to her knees in front of him, crying. "I won't do it again. I promise."

Wilson caressed strands of her as he said, "I just want to know that you're okay."

Cuddy blinked. Her pale blue eyes were watery from tears. She had cheated on him, but he wanted to know about her well-being. Guilt washed over her again. "I'll be all right when you tell me that you forgive me."

He cupped her chin. "I never got true forgiveness when I screwed up. I always wanted it, but I can give that to you." He pulled her up and pecked light kisses all over her face.

…………………………

House was driving them back from the airport. Cameron flipped through the radio stations. He turned his head towards her, mock outrage covering his face. "Kill my patient, break my cane, but don't ever touch my radio!" he cried.

Cameron laughed softly. "Because out of all three, the latter is the most significant," she stated sarcastically.

"Damn straight," he added.

The car became quiet as they wandered through their own thoughts. After a while, Cameron said, "Maybe we should invite our parents over to dinner soon. They all are going to have to find out eventually."

His face scrunched. "Do we have to?" he asked. "Can't we just send them an invitation to their graduation?"

She smiled. "I know it won't be a pleasant meal, Greg, but we have to do it."

House nodded. Micah's words twisted their way into his head. He started to wonder if she was right. He had been thinking about it since their conversation at his apartment. House had a problem. Even though he was in pain, the Vicodin had wrapped around him like barbed wire. It was stuck to his skin. It was in his blood.

Without warning, House said bluntly, "I'm addicted to the pills."

Cameron's head whipped around to look at him. "What?"

He was so still although his eyes darted to scan the road. Cameron detected something in his face that she had never seen before. She thought it was pure fear and realization. He took a shaky breath. "I think I should get some help before the babies are born."

Cameron's jaw dropped. But she never had time to answer him.

"Greg!" she screamed, her eyes bulging as she stared at the large truck headed straight for House. Metal squealed. There was a loud _crunch_ as the vehicles smacked. The last thing Cameron heard was House calling, "Alley," painfully before the world went black.

TBC


	27. Touch and Go

Chapter 27

Micah was sitting at the airport reading _Cosmo_ when her cell phone rang. Looking down at the caller id, she grinned at the name. "Hey, babe," she purred to Chase. "This is kind of sad. I mean I haven't even got on the plane yet."

Chase's heart twisted. She was so cheery. Micah Atwood had just found her birth father and a new man, and he was about to rip that from her. "Micah," he said, pained.

Micah's eyes went wide. She had not known Chase for very long, but she could tell something was wrong. Immediately, she stood up, grabbing her carry-on bag. "What is it?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Chase took a deep breath. "It's House."

………………………………

Allison Cameron woke with a start. Blinking furiously, her eyes flitted over the hospital room as she tried to remember where she was. Memories flooded back.

_Micah._

_Addiction._

_Truck._

_House._

"Oh, God," she whispered. Tears flooded her eyes just as the memories had flooded her mind. Cameron clawed from beneath the covers to get out of the bed. Hysterically, she kicked, further tangling herself in the sheets. Frustrated, she clutched at her stomach. "My babies! Oh my God, my babies!" she shouted. Cameron had never felt more alone. Had she believed in Hell, she would have thought that she had arrived. "Help! Someone help me!" she sobbed.

Foreman raced into the room. With his hands on her shoulders, he gently pushed her back down to the bed. "Get the hell off of me, Foreman! I need House. I need my babies!" she screamed frantically, twisting her body away from him.

Adding more pressure, he tried to soothe her. "The twins are fine. You barely got hurt. You just passed out from the stress of the accident," he reassured her. "You're still pregnant." As he checked her stats, he added, "I've called your sister. She and your parents will be here as soon as possible."

Cameron squeezed her eyes shut in relief, holding her stomach tightly. Then her eyes sprung open. "You said that I'm fine. What about House? Where's Greg?"

He pursed his lips as Foreman often did before he shared bad news. "He got hit pretty hard. House is still in the ICU."

Finally free from the sheets, she hauled herself up off the bed. All of her muscles ached as she wobbled on her feet. Foreman faced her, warning, "Cameron, you're not ready."

Cameron glared back at her colleague. Her eyes glinted dangerously; her teeth gritted. "Foreman, I need House," she repeated. The other doctor stepped aside and let her go.

……………………………………………

A few minutes later, Cameron was sitting next to House's bed, weeping. Through blurry eyes, she tried to engrave every detail of his face into her memory in case…

No, she could not think of it. Her heart was already snapping in two as she remembered that this was the second time in five months that she had sat waiting to see if he would…

_No_, she thought, shoving the thought from her mind. Cameron brushed her hand over his peaceful yet bruised features. Her fingertips grazed a bandage that was covering a nasty gash on his cheekbone. Sniffling back tears, Cameron cupped her stomach as if to reassure them all. She had lost her husband many years ago. She could not lose the love of her life now.

Holding his hand, she whispered, "Greg, you have to come back." Cameron lifted his hand up to kiss it. With a soft, sad smile, she said, "You know how to be mean, but you'd really be a jerk if you leave me here. Who's going to write on the white board? Or take me to Monster Truck Rallies? Someone has to torment Cuddy." Covering her mouth with her hands, she sobbed freely, shaking. "Oh, God, Greg, don't leave me. Please."

Wilson coughed politely to let her know that he was in the room. He had overheard her last few pleadings and wondered if she had found religion, but her utter despair and his own stung at his soul. He could not push back his tears. Cameron walked over to him. "What do you know?" she asked timidly but with hope in her tone.

Wilson found it difficult to find his voice. "We won't know for at least twenty-four more hours. He's still touch-and-go. House's parents will be here soon. I called them myself."

Cameron nodded absently as she headed back towards House. Wilson could barely hear her when she murmured, "He was planning to detox. Greg wanted to beat his dependency before the babies came."

Wilson's jaw dropped. The oncologist had been so lost in his own problems that he did not even know this important detail in his friend's life. Wilson felt as if he had failed him somehow, but he refused to let it show in front of Cameron. She needed some potentially positive news. "I made sure that the surgeon gave him more ketamine," he declared.

TBC


	28. Parents

Chapter 28

Micah rushed into the hospital. She was panting from fear. Chase met her in the lobby, throwing his arms around her. Micah's blue eyes haunted him as she looked up at him pleadingly. "How is he?" she asked.

Chase guided her to the elevators. "House is better, but he got hurt pretty badly. He's still in a coma," he informed her.

Micah tottered, feeling dizzy. "I just found him," she whispered.

Chase's heart broke. He hugged her again, mumbling soothingly, "I know. He'll be okay."

Micah secretly thanked God for sending her Chase. She did not think that she would have been able to get through this without him. "Are you going to stay with me?"

He smoothed down her hair, smiling softly. "Of course. I'm here, Micah."

Taking his hands in her, she said, "Please pray with me."

They bent their heads down and quietly prayed right there in the hallway.

………………………………

John and Blythe House walked like zombies into the hospital. It had been utter hell to find out that their only child was to be paralyzed for the rest of his life. It had been hell to get a phone call from Jimmy telling them that Greg had been shot twice. And it was hell now to discover that their boy was in another coma, for the third time in five years. No person should have to suffer that. And no parent should have to witness it, but they had. Holding hands, they headed for the hospital room that Wilson had told them he was in.

They stopped at the door and took a deep breath before they entered. The Houses were startled to find a young woman cuddled next to their son in his bed, her head lying on his chest as she slept. Blythe squinted to see if it was Stacy, but quickly deduced that her long, light brown hair indicated that she was not.

John tapped on Cameron's shoulder. She jumped, turning her head to the person that shook her. Expecting to see Wilson with hopefully good news, she inwardly cringed at the sight of House's father. The soon-to-be mother did not want to explain everything under these circumstances alone, but she pulled herself together and stood up. Cameron glanced down at her watch. It was now a new day, quite an early morning in reality. She had been asleep for about four hours. Cameron had been so relieved the night before when she was told that he was out of immediate danger. Overwhelming stress had exhausted her, so she curled up next to Greg to regain strength, mental and physical.

Cameron stuck out her hand to his father. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. House," Cameron greeted solemnly. "I would say that it's nice to see you again, but…"

Her words trailed off, so Blythe continued the conversation while she warmly shook the younger woman's hand. "Please call us Blythe and John," she offered. "How's Greg doing?"

Cameron checked his stats as she answered her. "He's stable now, but still unconscious. He needed several stitches and his right arm has been broken."

Blythe House let out a small cry, covering her mouth with her fisted hands. "Dr. Cameron, how long have you been seeing our boy?" John asked gruffly. He was not unfriendly, just a bit intimidating. She had the impression that he asked in order to distract his wife from their son's pain.

Her smile was small and sad, yet happy when she thought back to the moments they had. "Four months now and it's Allison," she told them. With hesitation, she added, "There's something else that we need to tell you."

Blythe put a hand on Cameron's shoulder. "When's the baby due, Allison?" she asked in the way only a mother can.

Her husband and Cameron gaped at her. "Your shirt was ruffled when you stood up. I saw your stomach. Your belly's rounding."

Cameron dipped her head down, thinking that House did not know how much like his mother he was. "April. The due date is April," she declared. "And they're twins."

His parents' eyebrows shot up. "Are you engaged?" he asked. John House's main wish was for his son to be happy. Greg had been so miserable for quite some time. He knew that he did not like it when he was so bluntly honest with him, but John felt as if he needed to hear the truth from someone.

She shook her head. "No," she replied. "We really haven't even had time to discuss the possibility." Cameron decided to refrain from telling them that the doctors administered ketamine. Wilson had told her once a couple months ago how hurt they were when House woke up after being shot and was still in pain. She was afraid to give them hope again. Cameron's naturally stiffened jaw slacked as she told them, "I love your son. And we'll do all we can to bring him back."

Blythe squeezed her hand and watched her leave the room. She wasn't surprised that Greg had finally started dating her. Allison was a sweet woman with compassion—exactly what Greg needed. She thought the world of her baby and she remembered how he looked at her the night they had come to visit.

When they were alone, John sat down next to his wife. "Do you think that they love each other?" he asked, watching his son sleep.

Blythe wiped away salty tears from her cheeks. "Yes, John, I think they do."

"Hi."

House's parents turned to see a young blonde girl with shining blue eyes standing at the door with Dr. Chase.

TBC


	29. William and Barbara

Chapter 29

The Houses looked this girl up and down. She was pretty, leggy, and scared out of her mind. John's brows knit together as his eyes shifted from her to Chase and back to her. "Are you another doctor? We thought Dr. Cuddy and Jimmy were supervising our son," he asked.

She treaded slowly farther into the room, letting go of Chase's hand. The girl turned back to him and nodded. Chase gave her a small smile of encouragement and left. "No, I'm not his doctor," she replied. "I'm his daughter, Micah Atwood."

Micah had ripped off the truth like a Band-Aid, and the shock in her grandparents' face was evident.

Blythe looked down at her son, her heart constricting with emotion. "Greg has a child," she said quietly in what was not really a question but not a statement either.

John's gruffness returned as he asked angrily, "Why didn't he tell us?" He knew that Greg had always been secretive, but this was beyond the realm of accepted behavior.

Micah shook her head, causing honey blonde stands to fall haplessly about her face. "He didn't know until about two weeks ago. Allison told me that they were planning to let you know soon, but…" she said, her words trailing off as she looked down at her broken father. Pain and worry released from her body in the way of salty tears.

Blythe shot up from her seat, coming around the bed. She encircled the girl in her warm arms and whispered loving words in her ear. "There, there, child. We're just happy that we know now."

They all grieved together in that room, willing a father and a son to wake up.

………………………………

Cameron paced back and forth in the conference room, not prepared for the battle about to ensue. Her parents were nothing like House's. Where Blythe was warm, her mother was frigid. While House hated his father for always speaking the truth, Cameron wished her father would just speak. Her parents had caused her to be uptight, strict, and motherly although her sister went the other direction. Emily had rebelled and dove head first into all of the spiciness the world had to offer.

Cameron's father, William, was a banker from Vermont. He had provided well for his family and displayed it proudly through his attitude. Her mother, Barbara, was a typical housewife from suburbia that liked to throw parties and gossip endlessly. And they held on to their reputation as if someone might someday come along and try to take it from them.

Emily had arrived a couple of hours before and only beat their parents by a few hours of getting there. William and Barbara had been on a cruise in the Bahamas. Once they had received news of the accident, the got of the ship at the first port and caught a plane to New Jersey.

"Calm down, sis," Emily soothed her. "They won't be half as pissed as you think they will be." Her feet were propped up on the conference table and she was eating an apple. To tell the truth, she was still shaking. Emily didn't know what she would have down if she had lost her only sister, her best friend.

"You damn well know they will irate, Em," Cameron countered. She bit at her nail. The woman did not need this right now. She was pregnant and the father of those babies was still in a coma. Cameron wanted no part of the lecture she was sure to get from her parents.

"Um, Cameron, your parents are here," Foreman announced, ushering in two people that looked only a few years older than House.

"Hi, mother. Father," Cameron said, finally standing still in order to greet them.

Barbara Cameron looked her up and down, almost _tsking_ at her daughter's dirty, unkempt hair. "That Dr. Foreman called us and told us you were all right, but we came to see you anyway," she said. She was wearing a soft pink cardigan sweater and pearls that matched. Neither Emily nor Cameron could remember a day in which their mother wore something other than pearls.

"You didn't have to do that, Mom," Cameron replied. "I really am fine."

William cleared his throat. His dark brown hair barely moved because he had it molded just perfectly. Looking over his glasses, he inquired, "He said someone else was in the car."

Emily then came up and put an arm around her sister. She knew she was going to need it. Taking a deep breath, Cameron said, "That was Dr. House. My boyfriend."

The girls watched as their parents exploded in front of them. "Your boss?" Barbara exclaimed. "How could you date your employer? And isn't he almost twice your age?"

Cameron looked down at her feet. "He's only fifteen years older."

"Only fifteen years!" William boomed. He was a man of few words, but those words could be devastating. "Have you lost your mind?"

Her mother threw her arms up in the air. "What will the family say? Or our neighbors? What are you trying to pull, Allison?"

Cameron finally came to life. Quaking with anger, her eyes flashed at her parents for the first time. "Excuse me for trying to be happy for once," she shouted.

"But, Allison—"

"No," she interrupted. "Greg House is a good man and he is going to be the father of my twins." Cameron held her stomach protectively as she tried to catch her breath.

"Oh, my…_father_!" her mother berated, livid. "You were stupid enough to get pregnant?"

"Yes, mother," Cameron countered, "I was that stupid. And I was also stupid for finding a man I love, unlike you."

Her mother's eyes bulged. "How dare you."

Emily bit her lip. She wanted them to stop berating her big sister. The tempestuous woman blurted, "I killed a man in Africa!"

Their mother and father blinked at her stupidly for several seconds. Her plan had worked. William and Barbara Cameron had been silenced for at least two minutes.

…………………………………

House's eyes opened slowly. He wanted to see Cameron when he opened them. But as before, when he had been shot, she was not there. His guts quivered at the thought that the accident had hurt her or their children. He needed to know.

Looking around the room, he noticed that it didn't look like any in the hospital. The walls were a warm brown and there were dark mahogany chests and wardrobes in the room. Sitting up, he noticed that he had no pain. His heart clutched. _Did this coma work?_ he wondered. Rubbing his hand down his thigh, his leg was smooth. No scar. Frowning, House threw the covers off of his leg. Looking down, he saw that his leg looked undamaged.

The pieces weren't coming together. "Cameron?" House walked around the room. He wasn't wearing a hospital gown, just his regular boxers and t-shirt. Something was wrong.

Opening the bedroom door, he strode down the hall without pain, without a cane. Smells of bacon and freshly-squeezed orange juice were intoxicating. As he entered the living room of this unidentifiable house, arms came from behind him, wrapping around his waist. He exhaled the breath he had been holding. _Ally_. Greg House spun around in bliss.

"Good morning, love," she purred.

His face dropped as his confused blue eyes gazed down at Stacy Warner.

_What in the hell?_

TBC


	30. New World Order

Chapter 30

"Stacy, what in the hell is going on? Where's Cameron?" he asked, fearing he was quite close to becoming frantic.

Twinges of jealousy trickled down her spine. Scoffing, she replied, "Greg, I'm sure she's at work. What's wrong with you?" Stacy disengaged herself from him, heading towards the breakfast table.

"What about Micah?" He felt so lost. The puzzle pieces had never been this scattered.

She looked over at him. "Who's Micah? Did you get a new assistant?"

House looked around the room for any clues as to what was happening. His eyes glided down over his hand. Ring. Golden band. "When did we get married?" he asked cautiously.

Her brows wrinkled. As she buttered her toast, she answered, "Five years ago, honey. Right after your infarction." Stacy's face glowed with love as she remembered past events. "You proposed because you were so happy that I listened to you and let you wait it out in the coma."

He realized that was why he had no scar on his leg; no muscle tissue was gone. No. This was ridiculous. He was Dr. Gregory House. Stacy had left and he was still a crippled addict that was soon to be a father to Allison Cameron's children. Sitting down at the table next to her, he closed his eyes. "I'm hallucinating," he said. House had recalled that the last time this had happened, when he had discovered it was a dream, he woke up. He thought it would work now. "This is just a hallucination," he added. Opening his eyes, he saw Stacy staring at him, her eyebrow cocked.

"Daddy!" two little girls with coal-black hair cried as they ran into the room. The eldest was five while the younger girl looked to be about three. They wrapped their tiny arms around his neck and waist. Small, angelic lips kissed either side of his cheeks.

Stacy had always wanted two girls named Alice, for her mother, and Mallory. House knew that must be the names for these children. Hugging them back, he forgot for a few moments that this was not real. "My first day of school starts today, Dad," Alice chirped excitedly.

He dropped his jaw in mock astonishment, but for once, there was no sign of sarcasm. "It is?" he asked playfully. "Make sure to throw an extra juicy spitball at your teacher for me."

"Dad," she chided as she tucked her chin down with a giggle as happy little girls often do.

Stacy chomped down on a piece of celery, a smile turning her lips up between bites. Greg seemed to be returning back to normal. He had worried her with the whole Cameron and hallucination bit. "You better hurry to work," she warned her husband. "The Dean of the hospital can't be late to his own building of sick people."

……………………………

_Dean of Medicine? _he asked himself as he stepped into his car. House noticed that he had no motorcycle. _Where was Cuddy?_ But then his thoughts turned to his dream family. Were they actually his _dream_ family, the one he had always wanted? Or had his other life been the hallucination? Maybe it had all been in his imagination, his disability, Cameron, Micah. Maybe he had finally somehow woken up from it and started his real life.

He parked his vehicle in the lot and headed for Princeton Plainsborough Teaching Hospital. Pangs of homesickness swept over his body like thousands of needles were pricking his skin. He was not married to Cameron. He didn't have _his_ twins. He didn't have Micah. But this was the day he had been dealt and Greg House would see it through until something made sense.

His mind was still racing. As he entered the building, he took a deep breath, but noticed the hospital was running like business as usual. Nothing dreamlike or different, it was the same nurses, same clinic.

House squeezed his hand as if to grip his cane, but then remembered that he had no reason for one. With a smile, he headed for the Diagnostics Department. He jogged up the stairs, something he had not done in many years. The New Dean was too distracted to notice that the blinds to his old office were closed. With a flick of his wrist, he opened the door.

He wished for the first time that day that he had his bottle of Vicodin because the sight in front of him was so painful that it felt as though someone had drove their hand through his leg and ripped out the muscle again. Wilson was sitting in House's old chair tickling Cameron, who was sitting on top of his lap, giggling. The oncologist was also snuggling his nose just beneath her ear, lightly kissing her neck.

Nausea caused him to sway on his feet. "Get the hell off of him, Ally!" he shouted in panic and despair.

They froze; Wilson's hands were left precariously just underneath Cameron's chest. "House, are you all right?" Cameron asked, shaken and slightly embarrassed that he had called her Ally. She patted her flushed cheeks with the backs of her fingers as she waited for an answer.

The reality of the situation hit him like a right to the jaw when Cameron had called him House. He wasn't "Greg" to her. Clearing his throat, he looked down at the floor, replying, "I just don't want to have to fire you, Dr. Cameron for inappropriate behavior in the workplace, especially when I'm not involved."

Wilson chuckled. "Well you should know, _Dean House_, better than anyone that it takes the entire board to fire the head of a department." He stroked the back of her neck right under her hairline with his thumb.

Another wave of reality struck House as his mind flashed the picture of the door he had just went through. It had said in fine white paint: _Dr. Allison Cameron, Head of Diagnostics_.

TBC


	31. A Lost Dream

Chapter 31

Allison Cameron was now head of the Diagnostics Department. It all started to make sense to House. He was already married when he hired Foreman, Chase, and Cameron, so she must have focused on her job instead of her heart. With the crush out of the way, she was able to outshine the boys. When House got promoted, so did she, and then into Wilson's arms she ran.

House couldn't breathe. The air only got thicker when he saw that Wilson and Cameron were wearing wedding bands. Shooting a glance at his best friend, he hitched his chin forward to motion Wilson to follow him. Wilson rolled his eyes at House's behavior and then kissed Cameron's cheek. "I'll see you later," he whispered.

She smiled, standing up. Cameron ran her fingers through Wilson's hair before watching him leave. The department head sat down at her desk to fill out paperwork with a sigh.

"Are you sure you're okay, House? Are you acting strange because its Alice's first day of school?" Wilson asked. "You know she'll be fine as long as her teacher doesn't know that you're her father."

House scoffed. "That's probably it," he said, "but just to humor me, I need you to answer some questions that I should already know the answers to."

As they strode down the corridor, Wilson frowned. House had not acted this strangely for quite some time. "You haven't been writing yourself prescriptions, have you?" he smirked.

House scrunched his face in aggravation. He asked, "Just tell me what happened to Cuddy?"

"She got a job offer to run a hospital in New York. She married some guidance counselor named Mark Warner," Wilson replied. "They've got like three kids and counting."

House laughed softly again. "And what about you?" House asked. "You made Cameron "Wife Number Four?"

Wilson's eyebrows knit together. "What are you talking about, House?" he asked. "You know that Cameron's my third wife."

House shook his head as he opened the door to his new office. "What about Julie?"

Wilson plopped down in a chair across from House's desk. "Who's Julie?"

He realized that Wilson had met Julie in a bar that he had taken House to when he was depressed about his leg and Stacy. No depression, no bar. No Julie. "Then we're just this happy little bunch, aren't we?" House asked with his usual amount of sarcasm.

Wilson blanched. This behavior was unlike Greg House. He had always been pushy but hardly ever callous. But the oncologist thought about the question seriously. With a warm smile, he answered, "Yeah, I think we are."

…………………………

Around noon, House heard a knock at his door. He stopped tossing his tennis ball when Stacy walked into the room. "Hey, honey," she said with a grin. "I thought we could have some lunch." In truth, they had been spending their lunch time together for the last five years, but today she had said it with less certainty because of his odd behavior.

Reciprocating her smile, he stood up. "Okay, but let's not stay in the cafeteria," he offered. House did not want to sit with Stacy in front of Cameron. For one, he didn't think he could bare seeing Ally without him. And secondly, he could still visualize Cameron's forlorn face when she had caught him hugging Stacy the night of the charity ball. He knew that this Cameron did not care, but he still did.

"Where are you taking us, Greg?" Stacy asked on a chuckle. Her smile faded when she saw where they were. "You want to eat lunch in here?" she cried incredulously.

House frowned, looking around the room. Sitting down next to the man in the coma, he shrugged. "What's wrong with here?" he asked innocently.

"He's comatose!" Stacy exclaimed.

"All the more reason," House said. "We won't have to buy him a sandwich." He studied her face once they started eating. She was clearly nervous about their daughter Alice. _Their daughter_. He had never thought that they would have children. And such beautiful little girls they were; he had to admit that. "Are you happy?" House asked quietly.

Stacy's croissant sandwich stopped halfway to her mouth. "Of course I am. I have more than I ever could have wanted," she proclaimed.

After they finished eating, Stacy hugged him tightly. He found himself squeezing her back. House looked down into her big love-filled eyes and saw the peace he had always craved to see from her. Part of him wanted to stay this way forever, so he bent his head down and kissed her softly. Stacy's hands came up around his smooth cheeks as she deepened the kiss.

House felt himself spinning into a blankness that seemed to know no bounds. Until he saw her. Cameron's face flickered through his mind's eye. Although the kiss felt good, he knew it wasn't right. She wasn't right. He pulled away from her, but delicately so that she would not suspect anything. Glancing down at her face, House did not notice that glow of light he always had before. His love for her had dimmed and nothing could change that.

…………………………

He was in his office later, his feet propped up on his desk as he thought. Cameron knocked softly on the door and then entered. Smirking, she asked, "What are you singing?"

House's eyes shot up, aware that she was there for the first time. "It's 'My Baby's Having a Baby,'" he replied.

Cameron's eyes went big with realization. "Is Stacy pregnant again?" she asked excitedly.

House smiled sadly. "No, I guess it's just a song I heard in a lost dream," he said. The look he gave her was loving and made her squirm uncomfortably.

"Can I talk to you?" she asked. Cameron was wringing her hands and had yet to sit down. He nodded, unable to do much more. Cameron took a deep breath and said, "You can't tell Jimmy this yet, please, because I haven't and he should really hear it from me." Now it was House's turn to squirm. "I thought you should know this because I'm head over the department and you're my boss."

She was beginning to babble. It drove House crazy when she did this. "Cameron," he said a little too loudly, "get on with it."

Cameron set her jaw and announced, "I'm pregnant. With twins."

House leapt up and began pacing. He was going crazy. Wilson got to hear Cameron call him a nickname. Wilson got to father Cameron's babies. Wilson got to have Cameron. Raising his head toward the ceiling, he shouted, "No, you can't do this to me. This isn't my life. This isn't the life I want!"

"House?" she asked, worried.

He came over to her in two quick, steady strides. "I want you," he said quietly. "I would rather live in pain until the day I drew my last breath and my heart fluttered to a stop than live without you."

Grabbing her arms, House pulled her to him and kissed her hard, yet enticingly, releasing all the confusion the day had given him. As his tongue started to slip between her lips, she whimpered and shoved as hard as she could against him. Gathering herself together, Cameron cocked her chin and said, "You have a best friend and wife who love you, for whatever reason. Try not to forget that."

Her jaw clenched, she opened the door and slammed it shut behind her. House chuckled as he thought of how the Ally Cameron in this world wasn't much different from the one in his. Feeling dizzy, the ground began to shake underneath him and his vision blurred. Falling backwards, he hit his head on the back of the desk before he fell to the ground.

"Ally."

Blackness, again.

……………………………………

"Ally," he mumbled.

"I'm here. I'll always be right here."

He felt the soft skin of a woman holding his hand. He heard the swish of rain falling outside. His eyes fluttered open. House smiled when he saw the beaming face in front of him. "Hey, Stallion," she whispered.

"What happened to "Preppy?" he slurred.

Laughing from the memory and joy of his being alive, she replied, "That's only when I'm drunk."

House grinned until he remembered what had happened. His blue eyes bugged with fear. "Are you okay? What about the babies?" he exclaimed in panic.

Cameron put her hand on his shoulder. "I'm fine. _We're_ all fine." Resting his head back on the pillow, he sighed with relief, but Cameron's face scrunched with apprehensiveness. "There's one thing, though."

House sat up alert again. "What is it?"

She tilted her head wearily. "Our parents our here."

House shut his eyes. "Damn it, why didn't you leave me in the coma?" He froze. His face went pale and his stunning blue eyes were distant.

Cameron was frightened by the look on his face. "What is it, Greg? What's wrong?"

House had not noticed it before. He had been too distracted by Allison. But then one word brought him light. _Coma_. He had been in a coma. A ketamine-induced coma.

"I'm not in pain."

TBC


	32. Under Better Circumstances

Chapter 32

Cameron put her hands on his rough cheeks. "What?" she asked timidly, afraid that she had heard wrong.

House cried for the first time in many years as he looked back at her laughing. "I'm not in pain, Ally."

Laughing with him, she scurried to bend over and kiss him. Their lips connected with such relief and love that the rest of the world spun away until it was just him and her. House brushed her hair away from her face, whispering, "I always dream of you." His forehead crinkled in thought as he added, "There were less kinky robots in this one, though."

Cameron plopped down in the chair next to him, exhausted. "I see you've come back to join the living and torment us all," Wilson announced happily as he entered the room. Putting his hand on Cameron's shoulder, he looked down at his friend with a smile. The oncologist had just come to check on House. He had been surprised, and thrilled to know that he was now awake.

"You know I couldn't leave you here alone with Cameron," House retorted, reliving the nightmare of them together.

"What would we have done without that inappropriate humor?" Wilson asked sarcastically, but inside he was thanking God that his friend had lived.

Cameron stood, declaring, "Well, this homoerotic Butch Cassidy and Sundance moment has been great and all, but I think it's time that we send in Micah and the parents."

House shuddered. "The parents," he repeated. "Now they only make you sicker instead of better."

"Silly me," Cameron teased. "I thought you were going to be less self-involved when you woke up. I should have known you'd be even more so."

House grinned at her, the spark returning in his blue eyes. "Okay, send them in," he consented. As Cameron left, he glanced up at Wilson, he said, "I am so Butch."

Wilson beamed at his friend. "Guess that makes me Sundance. I guess it's better that you're my _Butch_ instead of my bitc—"

"Greg!" Blythe House declared, interrupting Wilson's salty joke. Throwing her arms around her boy, she mumbled loving words into his ear. Because his arm was broken, House could only put one arm around her, but he held her as tightly as he could.

"It's good to see you awake, Son," John Blythe said solemnly, but there were tears in his eyes.

Cameron had followed them back into the room. Knowing that House wouldn't be able to tell them, she rubbed Blythe's back with her hand and said quietly, "Greg's leg doesn't hurt anymore."

Their heads whipped around back to their son for confirmation. When he nodded, his mother squealed, wrapping her arms around him again. After she let go, House's father stared straight into his eyes. "Are you going to start living again?" he asked simply.

Gregory House wanted to be angry at his father for asking him. He had hated him for the last five years because he was always telling him the same thing: he wasn't living. Now, for the first time, he was ready to accept his father's words. "Yeah, Dad, I'm going to live again."

His father scanned his face sternly, assessing his sincerity. A small smile danced over his lips for his son when he knew that he was telling the truth. That was the best news he had heard in five years.

"I'm going to go find Lisa," Wilson announced, leaving the room to share the big news.

Micah had finally been found and was rushing towards House's hospital room. When she got there, she saw the room was filled with Wilson, Cameron, and her grandparents. Since the short time she had gotten to know them, she had fallen in love with Blythe and John House. Just like House, they weren't replacing her other family, they were an addition, a piece to the puzzle.

When she reached the bed, Blythe took her hand in her own. The young woman smiled down at her grandmother, then turned to her father. Her feistiness returning, she said, "So, you're awake now. That's a vast improvement from comatose."

House chuckled. "Yeah," he replied. "Not needing a cane now won't suck either."

Micah's eyes got big as realization hit. She hugged her grandmother because she was delighted that they were going to have their son back. Then dread slipped through the cracks of her happiness. Greg was still an addict. Micah secretly hoped that the healing of his leg would heal his need for pills as well.

The room became still and icy as heads turned towards the door. Cameron's parents had not made any noise when they had entered the room, but everyone had been able to feel their dreaded presence. Cameron gathered herself together as she introduced them to House. "Mom, Dad, I'd like you to meet Greg House. You already know Emily. Greg, these are my parents, William and Barbara Cameron," she said. Cameron wished that she could have said, "Greg House, my fiancé," or anything other than just his name, but "boyfriend" seemed too informal considering that she was carrying around little Houses in her belly. And they weren't engaged, so she was left with nothing much at all.

House decided that he would try to be nice for Cameron's sake. These people looked scary as hell in a 'We Won the Best Lawn Contest' sort of way, and he was going to try hard not to piss them off. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Cameron," House said pleasantly. "I wish we could have met during better circumstances."

"Better circumstances?" Barbara repeated, her perfectly arched eyebrow raised. "What would those be, Dr. House? Before you impregnated our daughter or after your illegitimate spawn are born?"

Emily and Cameron sucked in deep breaths. The warmth fizzled from House's eyes like water being thrown in a fire. They weren't even going to give him a chance to piss them off. "I know you're upset, but your daughter is a very big girl and we've made our choices together," he said condescendingly.

William Cameron finally spoke. "You haven't even mentioned the possibility of marriage because you plan to leave as soon as you can't handle it anymore," he stated stonily, pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.

House rolled his eyes. "Either you can accept the fact that I've made a family with Ally or you can't. My advice to you, however, is to go back to your bank and your church bazaars in Vermont. Then come back here in about eight months with two pairs of booties and smiles on your faces."

Barbara was outraged. "You're almost our age!" she exclaimed. "You can't possibly think that you are right for our daughter." She then turned to Cameron. "And you. You always do this! First it was the dying boy in college. I tried to tell you that it was a stupid mistake and there was no future in it. But you never listen to me. Now you've gotten pregnant by this crippled old man."

Blythe and John refused to listen to much more. "Our son may be many things," John started, his voice thick and deep with anger. "But now he is first and foremost a father. To trivialize that is demeaning to the lives they have created. Greg is a good man and he loves your daughter. That's all you should need to know."

Blythe House did not take time to soak up the love and pride she felt for her husband at that moment. She knew that Greg had often felt that his father was too tough on him, but John loved his son. The mother faced the Cameron's now. She was known to be sweet and gentle, but her line had been crossed too far this time.

"As for the two of you," she stated quietly but with a voice of steel, "you should be ashamed to speak of your daughter as you do. If you don't see how caring and wonderful she actually is, _you_ are the ones that should be pitied."

Cameron was in near tears from the declaration. Turning to her parents, she said, "I think it's time for you to leave now."

As if they were already gone, House reached for Cameron's hand, asking whiningly, "Speaking of leaving, can _we_ go home now?"

………………………………

Foreman realized that he had left his umbrella in the conference room. It was still pouring even though much time had passed since House had woken up, so he headed back towards the elevators. When he finally got to the Diagnostics Department, he found Emily Cameron doodling on the white board in the darkened room.

"House will fire your sister on principle when he has discovered that you touched him markers," Foreman teased as he came in the room.

Emily had been frightened by his sudden appearance, but didn't let her jumpiness show. With the usual fire in her eyes, she joked, "I think Als will probably be alright. I mean, after all, she actually chooses to touch _his _marker, so that has to give her some bonus points."

Foreman cringed. "Ugh, what is it with you Cameron sisters and your incessant need to tell me sex jokes about House?" he said, but he was laughing.

"It's all about the brooding and stubble, baby," she countered, chuckling along with him.

Foreman went over to her, grabbing for another pen. He made a tic-tac-toe game on the board and marked an x in the center square. A corner of Emily's lip turned up ever so slightly. Giving her a sideways glance, he observed that she didn't let people in as much as she seemed to. "So what are you still doing here?" he asked.

Emily made an o on the board. "My parents went back to Vermont, and I didn't want to intrude on Als and Greg," she answered. She failed to mention that she didn't want to be alone either. Ever since Africa, she kept seeing the man die every time she closed her eyes. It followed her around like a nightmare. Emily could still hear his last gasps of breath and see the red trickle of blood leak from his mouth, his bulging eyes before nothingness, lifelessness. She knew that she had saved that little girl, but that did not change the fact that she just needed someone near.

Foreman decided not to ask her why she just didn't get a hotel room. He liked her mysteriousness and passion, but he also had the feeling that there was something more behind her deep green eyes. "Why don't you stay with me?" he offered. Once he noticed her skeptical face, he held up his hands in front of her. "I have a spare bedroom you can use. As long as you don't hang your underwear up in my bathroom, you can stay as long as you like."

……………………

House limped slightly into their apartment. He was no longer in pain, but he was still sore from the accident. Cursing the cast on his arm, he found it ironic that once he was free of one disability, he had gained another, although this one was temporary.

Although Cameron wasn't hungry, she felt the need to keep herself busy. "Do you feel like eating?" she asked.

Shaking his head, he said, "No." With that abrupt answer, she spun on her heels and headed off in the opposite direction of the kitchen. Cameron thought that he might like to sleep on new sheets, so she went into their bedroom, ripping off the ones that were on the bed. House collapsed into a seat in the bedroom while he quietly watched her work.

Frowning, he had the urge to twirl his cane, but it was no longer there. He wanted to sing and cheer because of it, but he had worse problems than a bum leg at the moment. Cameron had not touched him since her parents had left. "You really did just want me because I was damaged," he said. It wasn't a question.

Cameron snapped up, her back straight. She still had a pillow case in her hand. "What did you say?"

House shifted in his leather chair. "My leg. I'm not damaged anymore."

Glaring at him, she said grittily, "How could you be so callous and blind to think that I would stay with you and want your children if I just saw you as a project. Maybe you're the one who's not ready for a commitment."

"Then why are you avoiding me!" he shouted. House was more scared than angry. He had just gotten her back; he couldn't bear the thought of losing her again.

"Because I want a life with you, damn it!" she yelled right back. Despair constricted her body like a boa. She lowered her voice to a mere, painful whisper as she added, "My parents were out of line, but some of what they said was true. I want more than this with you. I want to be your wife."

A lump lodged in his throat, causing him to breathe shallowly. Hauling himself up from his seat, he went over to Cameron. House wrapped his arms low around her waist and looked deep into her eyes. She noticed for the first time since the fight started that his eyes were watering with tears. "And after this accident, I realize that I want you to be my wife. But I have to make myself worthy of you and the twins first."

Her body was humming with joy, but it soon turned to confusion. "What do mean, Greg? You don't have to change for me."

House shut his eyes. Her unconditional love was heart wrenching yet beautiful. Shaking his head, House corrected, "Yes, I do. I need to get some help for my addiction."

TBC


	33. Home

Chapter 33

Two weeks after House had checked himself into a rehab clinic, Cuddy and Wilson were lying in bed late one Saturday night. She was not one to twirl her curly, black hair with her fingers, but she did now as she bit her lip. "Jimmy, I have something I need to tell you," she told him with trepidation.

He squinted in the darkness. "What is it?" Wilson asked, pulling her closer to him.

"I'm pregnant," Cuddy replied in a whisper.

"What! Lisa, that's great!" he exclaimed. Wilson's heart thumped joyously as he lifted himself up to kiss her. Noticing that her lips were trembling, he froze. "Lisa?" When all he could hear where her gentle sobs, dread washed over him as it never had before. "It might not be mine?" he asked, his mind painfully remembering that day he had seen Van Reynolds with Lisa.

Cuddy lifted her hands to his neck. "Jimmy, I'm sorry. I'll get the test," she reasoned.

Shaking his head, Wilson got off the bed. "I need to be alone for a while," he answered in his ever silent tone.

…………………………………

The next morning, Chase and Micah were sitting on the floor of his apartment, barefoot, eating Captain Crunch and playing chess. "You are never going to beat me, my fine man," she challenged with a sexy smile. "I was taught by the best."

Long bangs brushed over Chase's forehead as he asked, "Oh, yeah? And who was that?"

"Sister Ellen in fifth grade," Micah said, her eyes sparkling with imminent victory. "I won a lot of rosary beads and lunch money that year."

Chase tried to hide his surprise. She had never told him that she had attended a Catholic school. "I hate nuns."

Micah giggled. "Who doesn't?" she asked, not realizing that she had echoed her father's sentiment.

The statement made Chase think of him now. "How's House doing?"

Her face became more solemn as she said, "Last time Allison called, she told me that he was going through some detox pretty badly. But his broken arm is healing nicely and he should be clean in a month."

Chase looked into her deep blue eyes. "And what about you? How are you doing?"

She made a sideways smile. "I'm leaving," she replied. Micah tried not to enjoy Chase's look of despair for too long. "I'm leaving New York," she added. "After this semester, I'm going to transfer down here. Once pre-med is through, I thought I might go to Princeton Plainsborough Teaching Hospital. How does that sound?"

Micah knew that it was the right choice. She loved Greg, but that wasn't the main reason for the move. The young woman loved Robert Chase even more, and after her father's accident she realized there was no where else she wanted to be than with Chase. Life was too fragile not to cherish.

Chase beamed a silly grin as he leaped over the chess board, scattering the pieces. They fell over onto their backs together but never broke hold of each other. He loved Micah so much that he never wanted to let her go.

Laughing, she threw her hands up in reference to the now wrecked board game. "You cheated!"

……………………………

That next week, Foreman was changing the sheets for Emily. "Do you want to get a bite to eat before you go see Cameron?" he hollered in the direction of the living room.

"As long as you're buying," she joked back. Emily Cameron felt so comfortable in his apartment. She felt comfortable with him. But she saw him as nothing more than a caring friend.

After Foreman finished his duty, he headed towards her. "You know, it's been three weeks. Maybe you should find a place of your own." The neurologist did not really want her to go, but he knew that if she did not find permanent ground soon, she would leave. They were just friends now, but he hoped that someday that would change.

Emily rolled her eyes as she sipped the last of her beer. "You know my job takes me everywhere," she countered.

His eyebrow shot up. "If you really wanted to be out exploring, you would have left by now," Foreman retorted. "I think that you're tired of moving. You want to be around your family, around Cameron. So stay. You can be a photographer here."

It was true. There was a lot she could do with her talent for photography; she didn't need to travel. And the thought of traipsing about was no longer appealing. The more she was alone, the more she saw that face, that nightmare from Africa. Here she had family and possibly friends. "Okay, I give," she relented. "Let's find me a place to stay."

_It's a start_, Foreman thought with a hopeful smile.

…………………………

A month had finally come. House had been in rehab for six weeks, and Cameron could not have been more ecstatic and nervous at the same time. Her belly was starting to protrude. Resting a hand on her tummy, she reveled in it. "Are you ready, Wilson?" she asked.

Wilson ended his call on his cell phone and darted for the driver's side of Cameron's car. "I'm ready to pick up the prince," he said cheerfully, sarcastically. He was excited to have his best friend back. Greg House could royally piss him off, but he needed him right now.

Their drive was relatively quiet as they headed for the hospital. They pulled into the driveway finding House with no cast, no cane, standing by the curb. Cameron jumped from the car. "How are you?" she asked him, holding his hands tightly in hers.

"Much better now," he assured her in a whisper. "I tried to escape once over the electric fence, but I got caught. And they whipped me. With chains."

"Nothing you didn't deserve, I'm sure," Wilson said as he came over to hug his friend. "Welcome back," he whispered.

House smiled with contentment at being together with two of the most important and loved people in his life.

On the drive back, House asked, "So how's Cuddy?"

Wilson swallowed. "She's pregnant." He didn't elaborate that he had refused to speak to her in any other way than professional for three weeks and they both drowned him in congratulations. They dropped him off at his home and sped towards their own. The oncologist noticed that it was about to rain as he entered the apartment.

Cuddy crept into the living room with a baseball bat. Gasping at the sight of Wilson, she said, "Jimmy, you scared me!" Embarrassed, she sat the bat down.

He stepped closer to her. "I don't care," he declared. When he saw the confusion clouding her features, Wilson clarified, "I don't want the baby to take a paternity test. We wanted child, and now we've been blessed with one." He put his hand on her stomach, saying, "This is my child."

………………………………

Cameron scurried around the car now that the rain was falling hard. She tried in vein to haul his suitcase from the trunk. "Just leave it, Ally," he told her.

"No, I can get it," she shouted over the rain.

"I'm not a cripple in any way anymore. You don't have to help now," he said, shoving the suitcase back into the trunk and slamming the lid down. "There's no need to bring it in now."

He could see the hurt in her eyes. "I never treated you like a cripple," she hollered back at him. The rain had already soaked through their clothes and drenched their hair.

"I know," he said. "I wanted you to before we started dating, so that I would have an excuse to run. But I never want to run from you again, Ally. I love you."

"Does that mean your proposal still stands?" she asked, her heart thrashing around in her chest like a dying fish on a boat.

He nodded, laughing happily. She threw herself into his arms, and for the first time in so long, Greg House did the impossible. He lifted her from the ground, causing her to wrap her legs around his waist. They kissed passionately as the rain danced around and on them.

"Then my answer is still yes, Stallion," she whispered into his ear. House shifted her so that he was spinning them in celebratory circles. If the rain hadn't been so loud, their laughter and shouts of joy could have been heard for miles.

……………………………

That April, Mr. and Mrs. House welcomed little Emily Blythe, a blue-eyed darling that had her mother's nose, and little James Gregory, a raucous boy with long limbs and deep green eyes.

The End.


End file.
